Category: News

Box Office Democracy: “The Expendables 3”

ex3-posterThe first two Expendables films worked for me in the same way old-timers days work for me in baseball.  They take a career that scarcely has any use for people over the hill and gave them a place to look relevant in a limited space.  My biggest problem with The Expendables 3 is that it deviates too much from that idea by introducing a crop of young guns that expose the existing cast as being largely too old for this line of work while the presence of the established stars steals all the gravitas from the scenes shared with the newer actors.  There are great individual performances and a couple of surprising ones. Excellent choices, but ultimately the Expendables franchise seems to be on a downward trajectory and I don’t know how it will right itself.

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The Point Radio: LEGENDS Sean Bean Lives On

The marketing campaign said “DON’T KILL SEAN BEAN” but producer Howard Gordon (24, HOMELAND) assured us there was little chance of that happening on LEGENDS. Howard, and series star Ali Larter, fill us in on the new TNT drama, plus meet the REDWOOD KINGS who are cutting up every week on their new Animal Planet show.

THE POINT covers it 24/7! Take us ANYWHERE on ANY mobile device (Apple or Android). Just  get the free app, iNet Radio in The  iTunes App store – and it’s FREE!  The Point Radio  – 24 hours a day of pop culture fun. GO HERE and LISTEN FREE  – and follow us on Twitter @ThePointRadio.

Warner Celebrates Batman’s 25th With New Release

batman25thThe movie opened 25 years ago in June and July was Batman Day but Warner Home Entertainment decided to wait until the holiday buying season to release a celebratory new edition of Tim Burton’s vision of the Dark Knight.

Burbank, Calif., August 14, 2014 – To help mark Warner Bros. Entertainment (WBE) and DC Entertainment’s milestone 75th anniversary of DC Comics’ popular Batman character, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment (WBHE) will release Batman 25th Anniversary Two-Disc Edition, a new Blu-ray™ edition debuting November 11 (at $24.98 SRP) in the studio’s distinctive new sleek Diamond Luxe collector-style packaging. With its state-of-the-art sophisticated and durable design, the new packaging is perfect for those wishing to add this edition to their home libraries. Also included is Batman: The Birth of the Modern Blockbuster— a look at the phenomenal marketing, extensive merchandising and franchise foresight that set the template for the next 25 years of tentpole pictures.

WBHE and DCE’s year-long celebration, befitting the world’s most popular Super Hero, will boast new products from WBE and DC Entertainment in numerous areas – comics, TV, Interactive Entertainment, Consumer Products and more. There is a new commemorative 75th anniversary Batman logo and an exclusive “Cape/Cowl/Create” art exhibit, featuring 20 contemporary artists’ interpretations of The Dark Knight’s iconic cowl headpiece and cape from the new Batman: Arkham Knight video game. Various other events are taking place throughout the year.

In addition to releasing Batman 25th Anniversary Two-Disc Edition, WBHE will also feature the highly anticipated release of the 1960s Batman: The Complete Television Series for the first time ever. Other new home entertainment releases include animated films Son of Batman and Batman: Assault on Arkham.

In announcing the Batman 75th anniversary initiative in March, WB Chairman and Chief Executive Kevin Tsujihara noted, “Batman is an incredibly important property with multi-generational appeal across all of the Studio’s businesses, and we’re proud to celebrate this milestone anniversary. From billion-dollar blockbuster films to TV, home entertainment, video games and consumer products, The Dark Knight continues to resonate with audiences worldwide and rightfully deserves his place as a global pop culture icon for the ages.”

About the Movie

In 1989, director Tim Burton breathed new life into one of the most complex and intriguing characters in popular culture. Burton cast off the 1960s camp depiction of the Dark Knight and launched for Warner Bros. one of the most popular comic book film series ever. Batman was the top-grossing movie that year and subsequently became a global phenomenon.

Tim Burton’s vision and Michael Keaton’s performance as the Caped Crusader combine perfectly to capture Gotham City’s sinister atmosphere and Batman’s brooding nature. Jack Nicholson stars in a memorable performance as the maniacal Joker and Kim Basinger is Vicki Vale, the beautiful and resourceful photojournalist desired by both men. Featuring songs by Prince and a score by Danny Elfman, Batman won the 1990 Oscar® for Best Art Direction/Set Decoration (Anton Furst and Peter Young).

Special Feature

  • Batman: The Birth of the Modern Blockbuster (NEW) Discover how the film’s phenomenal marketing, extensive merchandising and franchise foresight set the template for the next 25 years of tentpole pictures.

Note: All enhanced content listed above is subject to change.

Academy Awards® and Oscar® are both registered trademarks and service marks of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Blu-ray Disc™ and Blu-ray™ and the logos are the trademarks of Blu-ray Disc Association.

Warner Home Video Blu-ray Discs™ offer resolution six times higher than standard definition DVDs, as well as extraordinarily vibrant contrast and color and beautifully crisp sound. The format also provides a higher level of interactivity, with instant access to extra features via a seamless menu bar where viewers can enjoy features without leaving or interrupting the film.

Young Justice: Season One On Sale Today

Young Justice-S1-WACWarner Archive Collection continues to bring fan-favorite television series to glorious 1080p high definition presentation with the Tuesday, August 12 release of Young Justice: Season One on Blu-ray.

The two-disc, 26-episode Young Justice: Season One features former DC Comics assistant editor Greg Weisman (Gargoyles) and Brandon Vietti’s (Batman: The Brave and The Bold) critically acclaimed and fan-approved tale of titanic teen heroes. Strap in and get ready for this dashing and daring new take on

Robin, Aqualad, Kid Flash, Superboy, Miss Martian and Artemis as they splash across the 16×9 widescreen.

In this first season, a ‘junior’ Justice League bands together for purposes both light and dark – to honor the legacies they will one day inherit, and to be the Justice League’s secret weapon. From within their HQ The Cave, they embark on covert missions that would be impossible for the high profile Justice League. Batman (naturally) is their mission handler, Red Tornado supervises and Black Canary trains them. But the lads and ladies of Young Justice push their mission envelope and discover the dark secrets hidden behind the scenes of this alternate DC universe.

The Point Radio: Kevin Conroy On Keeping BATMAN Fresh

BATMAN ASSAULT ON ARKHAM is the newest direct-to-DVD DC feature with a lot of familiar parts including Kevin Conroy reprising his Batman role, and telling us how he manages to always keep it fresh. Plus, comedian John Lehr goes from Geico caveman to western funny man in the Hulu series QUICK DRAW, and talks about how improv is a huge part of the show.

THE POINT covers it 24/7! Take us ANYWHERE on ANY mobile device (Apple or Android). Just  get the free app, iNet Radio in The  iTunes App store – and it’s FREE!  The Point Radio  – 24 hours a day of pop culture fun. GO HERE and LISTEN FREE  – and follow us on Twitter @ThePointRadio.

The Point Radio: INTO THE STORM Reveals Monster Nature

Warner Brothers’ new disaster flick, INTO THE STORM, features some pretty real weather scenes rather than CGI effects and actress Sarah Wayne Callies tells us how long it took her to finally get dry. Plus more with the Immortal Hulk Hogan including his cut on today’s pro wrestling scene.

THE POINT covers it 24/7! Take us ANYWHERE on ANY mobile device (Apple or Android). Just  get the free app, iNet Radio in The  iTunes App store – and it’s FREE!  The Point Radio  – 24 hours a day of pop culture fun. GO HERE and LISTEN FREE  – and follow us on Twitter @ThePointRadio.

The Point Radio: SyFy Rides High On The Winds Of SHARKNADO

It’s been a great week for the folks at SyFy with the combined audience for the second SHARKNADO film plus encores of the first hitting over 18 million viewers. We talk to director Anthony Ferrante about how big ratings don’t necessarily mean big budgets, plus Vivica Fox and Judiah Friedlander explain why they were thrilled to jump on board this franchise. Then we sit down with wrestling superstar Hulk Hogan to talk about how the landscape of the business has evolved light years in recent days, plus the real story behind his flub at Wrestlemania.

THE POINT covers it 24/7! Take us ANYWHERE on ANY mobile device (Apple or Android). Just  get the free app, iNet Radio in The  iTunes App store – and it’s FREE!  The Point Radio  – 24 hours a day of pop culture fun. GO HERE and LISTEN FREE  – and follow us on Twitter @ThePointRadio.

Meet Cracked’s latest series: The Antiheroes

The AntiheroesLos Angeles, CA (August 4, 2014) – Cracked, one of the United States’ longest running humor institutions has announced its new web series from Cracked Studios entitled Antiheroes. The new 5 episode web series premieres on today.

Antiheroes follows a hilarious, semi-functional group of slackers at a debt collection agency who are inadvertently blessed (cursed?) with superpowers. The Workoholics meets Heroes comedy focuses on this powered group of coworkers going out of their way to not use their powers to fight crime, because fighting crime looks “just, like, way too hard, man.”

Writer Cody Johnston says, “We saw The Avengers and wondered why no one ever tried to take a little nap or just dick around on their phone to unwind, so we made this. We’re hoping Thor is introduced to the concept of ‘vegging out’ in Avengers 2, but in the meantime we hope you enjoy our fun, action-packed series that was made for more or less the same amount of money as all of Marvel’s past and future films.”

Starting today, full episodes of the series will be released every other day, with the 5th episode airing on Wednesday, August 13th. The web series was written by Cracked.com writer Cody Johnston, directed by Abe Epperson and stars Michael Swaim, Soren Bowie, Katy Stoll, Greg Scali as well as Cody Johnston.

Cracked.com, which is known for its non-fiction humor articles containing some of the most insightful and well-written pop culture observations and Webby Award series AFTER HOURS, launched Cracked Studios earlier this year to focus on original narrative shows and miniseries designed for the burgeoning digital marketplace.

Box Office Democracy: Guardians of the Galaxy

  • News
  • August 4, 2014

I have spent months telling everyone who would listen that I thought Guardians of the Galaxy would be the first flop of the Marvel Studios era.  While Iron Man and Thor were hardly household names before their recent turns they were the practically Superman wearing a Mickey Mouse costume compared with Star-Lord and Groot.

There’s also the inherent tendency for cosmic stories to end up feeling pretty nonsensical, maybe not more nonsensical than the Asgard stuff but audiences didn’t connect with Green Lantern and that seemed to be the closest comparable movie.  I thought this would be an emperor-has-no-clothes moment and would unravel the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe.

I’m happy to report I was a complete moron and while many of those ill portents might have been true James Gunn and his cast made such a thoroughly enjoyable movie that they don’t matter.

Guardians of the Galaxy is easily the funniest Marvel movie but it also derives its comedy in such a different way than most super hero movies.  Every super hero movie I can think of either has one character that’s responsible for generating 90% of the laugh lines (your Tony Starks or your Lokis) or by sort of having moments of acknowledging the absurdity of the premise (this was way overdone in the later Schumaker Batman films).  Guardians lets all five members of the team be funny and it helps so much.  It helps the plot (and I’ll get to why the plot needs a little bit of help) but it also lets the actors shine in these characters.

I knew coming in to expect great things from Chris Pratt but I was not expecting Bradley Cooper to turn in the best performance of his career playing a mutant raccoon.  I don’t even just mean he’s funnier in this movie than anything else, although he is, but he disappears in that character and I never thought I was hearing Bradley Cooper.  Vin Diesel steals entire scenes despite only ever saying three words.  This ensemble might not be better than Downey, Evans, Johansson et al. in the Avengers franchise but they fit their roles as good if not better than the big team and it’s stunning to watch.

I mentioned earlier that the plot needs a little bit of help and that’s not entirely fair.  As someone who has been reading comic books literally as long as I can remember I had no problem following what was going on.  The three people I went with who did not have that background had no idea what had just happened.  They enjoyed themselves immensely, and that should be the real measure of a movie, but they could not tell me who the non-Guardian characters were, what their motivations were, or what an “Infinity Gem” did.  They push through a lot of stuff without time for anything to sink in or without providing a lot of exposition and just relied on the general charisma of the rest of the film to carry the plot a little bit.  It worked flawlessly and is the biggest difference from Green Lantern, which explained everything in laborious detail, and had no joy anywhere to be found.

I still think there are flaws in the MCU road map (honestly, who is clamoring for a Doctor Strange movie?) but I can’t doubt them any longer.  I will anxiously await every movie they put out until they prove they can’t do it.  I went in to this movie thinking I wouldn’t like it at all and walked out with only a minor quibble about the use of slow motion.  Make mine movies Marvel.

Check Out a Clip from Batman: Assault on Arkham

Batman_Arkham_Asylum_Waller at boardWarner Animation has released an all-new clip from Batman: Assault on Arkham, the next entry in the popular DC Universe Original Movie series. The film is now available to own via Digital HD, and will be available on Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD on August 12.

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