Tagged: Disney

Halloween Costume Contest — Send Us Your Marvel Super-Hero Pictures!

  • News
  • October 29, 2011

Kids and adults are no doubt dressing up for school and office parties in celebration of Halloween. Many of you will no doubt be dressed as Marvel characters and we want to see them.

Not only that, we want to publish your pics and name two as the best, awarding lucky winners with a complete set of [[[Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes]]] courtesy of our friends at Walt Disney Home Entertainment. That’s right, all four volumes can be yours if you impress us. Just go to our Contact Page, select “I’d like to submit a file for review!”, fill out the form and upload your picture.

Submission constitutes permission to publish your name and picture. The submission must be accompanied with your full name and address so winners may receive discs. Submissions must be timestamped by 11:59 p.m. Monday, October 31. The judgement of ComicMix’s expert panel of judges will be final.

Happy Halloween!

And as part of our Saturday Morning Cartoons section, here are some clips from the DVDs in question:

AVENGERS: VOLUME 3 – IRON MAN UNLEASHED

V3 Clip: Walk in Both Worlds (Iron Man, Thor, Black Panther)

AVENGERS VOLUME 4 – THOR’S LAST STAND

V4 Clip: Stuck in the Realms (Hulk, Black Panther, Iron Man)

V4 Clip: What Needs To Be Done (Giant Man, Ultron, Iron Man, Hulk)

The Lion King

The second age of Disney greatness made raising children in the 1990s a real treat. Taking youngsters to an animated film recreated some of the magic the parents experience when they were first brought to the theater. To its credit, Disney continued to carefully curate its collection of classic films, filling in the gaps left by the far more mediocre fare that marked the 1970s and 1980s. Interestingly, one of those final films was where one of the current age’s greatest was born.

I still remember sitting in the theater with the kids and saw the trailer for The Lion King, which consisted of the opening song, a gutsy move but a brilliant one. Everything you needed to know was present; the sheer majesty of the animal kingdom, the quality of the animation and color palette, and the amazing score.

The fourth film from the Jeffrey Katzenberg/Michael Eisner regime, The Lion King felt special from the outset and has remained that way despite repeated viewings. Now finally out on Blu-ray today, the movie looks and sounds better than ever.

One of the reasons, the movie works is that it deals with universal themes, notably those of coming of age and the relationship between father and son. While the notion of the “Circle of Life” may have been beaten to death since it was reinforced here, respecting the life cycle is a good lesson for audiences young and old alike.

In the best of the Disney tradition, the film also nicely blends action, drama, and humor so it has a rhythm of its own. The littlest viewers can giggle at Timon and Pumba’s antics while others can feel the adrenaline pump during the battles, but there is certainly something for everyone, done with style and panache.

What’s interesting is that once the film’s concept was put into active development, it had to compete for animators with Pocahontas, which most saw as the next slam dunk film. Freed from the same level of scrutiny, the younger animators who signed on rose to the challenge and then some. It was inspired to blend Tim Rice and Elton John for the songs while Hans Zimmer delivered one of his finest scores.

The usual array of extras for a Diamond Edition film are all on display, and actually had me ready for more. The package contains Blu-ray and a standard DVD discs and comes with a fine user interface. New to this collection is a 39 minute “Pride of the Lion King” featurette that reunites former Chairman Katzenberg, Zimmer, producer Don Hahn, and co-directors Roger Allers & Rob Minkoff. This is followed with an additional 21 minutes of memories, “The Lion King: A Memoir”, hosted by Han. The co-directors introduce five previously unseen Deleted Scenes, explaining how these did not make the final cut. Also represented is the missing song, “Morning Report”, which was restored for the Broadway adaptation. The affection for the movie is demonstrated with the freshly animated Gag Reel with outtakes produced specifically for the disc.

The extras from the previously released Platinum edition return here so you get the audio commentary, Art Gallery, and the Sing-Along Mode.

If you have an iPad, the film comes with the new Disney Second Screen app stuffed with production art and interactive games. For those who use the BD-Live function, this one comes with  the “Virtual Vault” access which will show you “The Making of ‘The Morning Report'”, three additional Deleted Scenes, “Stage, Film, Story and Musical Journey” featurettes, Elton John’s “Circle of Life” music video, a Film-to-Storyboard Comparison, two short Demo Sequences and an Unfinished Scene.

One thing I wish they addressed head on was an acknowledgement in some way that the film owed a debt to Osama Tezuka’s Kimba the White Lion. The parallels are too striking for it to have been sheer coincidence.

As we enter the holiday season, this goes on your Must Have list.

The Tempest

thetempestbluray-254x300-1479053You have to give Julie Taymor credit. She rarely repeats herself and brings a sense of creative vision to every project, making each effort unique. For every brilliant stage work, The Lion King, there is a creative misfire, Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark. And on screen, she scored a bullseye with Across the Universe and disappointed with The Tempest. The adaptation of William Shakespeare’s final play is now out on DVD from Walt Disney Home Entertainment.

The Bard’s works have been interpreted and reinterpreted since they were first staged at the Globe Theater so it’s no surprise Taymor wanted to bring her own ideas to the script. Her bold move was to turn Duke Prospero into Prospera, the duke’s wife and then cast Dame Helen Mirren. Taymor said at the time that no male actor seemed to fit her idea of the lead so tried a woman for a staged reading and decided the story held up.

Translated to the screen, Prospera, the sorceress, presides over the inhabitants on a small island, dealing with her daughter Miranda’s  (Felicity Jones) romance with Ferdinand (Reeve Carney) while fending off the schemes of Caliban (Djimon Hounsou) and Stephano (Alfred Molina) to do her in. There’s magic galore and Ariel, usually played by a female but here is essayed by Ben Whishaw, is a genuine sprite.

Taymor adapted Shakespeare’s words but they remain familiar ones and she has assembled a fine cast led by Mirren, who is never short of fascinating to watch work. Molina, Hounsou, Chris Cooper and Alan Cumming lend strong support so the overall production should be far more satisfying than it proves to be. There’s a crackle of energy missing from the performances and the CGI effects, which she used so well in Universe, don’t measure up. For a story about magic the effects prove oddly dull and uninspiring.

The pacing moves along but languidly, as if shooting on a Hawaiian island enervated cast and crew.

The movie performed well at festivals before being met with a collective yawn by critics and audiences alike last December making for a poor year end showing for Taymor. The movie plays much the same way on DVD aided by the usually crisp video transfer from Disney and helped tremendously by some terrific audio work.

Students of Shakespeare will want to see this and own the Blu-ray edition which comes with some terrific special features. In addition to Taymor’s perfunctory commentary, there’s a separate track with Virginia Mason Vaughan (Professor of English at Clark University) and Jonathan Bate (Shakespeare Professor at England’s University of Warwick), using their depth of knowledge to informatively discuss the adaptation. It sounds like an English paper read aloud is quite interesting.

Additionally, there’s the one-hour-six-minute Raising the Tempest which covers the production from script to final editing. There’s always something to learn from these but are really for students of film. This one, though, has Brand offering up comedic patter throughout and makes this worthwhile.

You can watch Julie & Cast: Inside the L.A. Rehearsals, a 14 minute look at Brand, Molina and Hounsou getting a handle on their characters under Taymor’s watchful eye. This is a revealing look at the creative process. There’s an additional, more humorous five minute Russell Brand Rehearsal Riff as he improvises answers as Trinculo to Taymor the Interviewer’s questions. The disc is rounded out with Carney’s “Mistress Mine” music video and an assortment of trailers.

Samurai! Zombies! The Supernatural! And Zorro! Oh my!

  • News
  • September 11, 2011

Sydney Australia’s Silver Fox Comics reimagines Zorro.
*Edited 9/22/11

PRESS RELEASE:

zorro1-7131436
Silver Fox Comics redefines Zorro in an all-new, all-original comic book series produced from Sydney Australia!

“This may be the boldest and most daring Zorro comic ever created! Could this be the basis of the next Zorro movie?”
John Gertz President Zorro Productions

Silver Fox Comics: Australia’s most action packed independent comic book publisher debuts with a new series for the legendary Zorro!  This is the first Zorro story written by an Aussie and features newly commissioned art, which will build into the most action packed Zorro comic ever produced. As Issue 1 proclaimed “SAMURAIS TO THE LEFT, ZOMBIES TO THE RIGHT. WILL ZORRO SURVIVE?”

ISSUE 2 OUT NOW!
Our 2nd issue of Zorro is now on sale at newsagents nationwide and select comic stores! Issue I on sale on this website and at all good comic stores. This comic is sold exclusively in Australia only.

WRITER SORAB DEL RIO DISCUSSES ZORRO
“This Zorro takes on many modern day themes, such as drugs, persecution of indigenous races, and the supernatural, whilst still retaining the classic iconography and swashbuckling action. This isn’t a safe licensed-to-Walt Disney mainstream Zorro, and it isn’t aimed at kids. This is Zorro, as it should be done. It’s pulp fiction style, rough, gritty and dangerous. It’s East meets West, with the supernatural, all-out fights, drugs, samurai warriors, beautiful women, zombies, guns and blades. This has opened a new path for the Zorro legacy which is the start of an epic, darker, action- packed Zorro, the likes of which have never been conceived before.

New characters emerge, such as Mirella, a gypsy fortune teller who becomes Zorro’s gateway into the supernatural world, the villainous General Cypher is introduced, who sets out to destroy the native Indians, The Beast – merciless tax collector, Yoshiko, the Empress of Opium, Ashikaga her samurai guard, and Carmelita – a dream of a woman you would kill for. 
 The first issue we released features two stories:  The first story, The Defeat of Destiny, sees Zorro uncover a plot, by the new Spanish regency Cypher, to begin importing and farming opium in California. The land of the natives is taken by force in order to clear land for opium. The Japanese arrive, an Indian princess is kidnapped, and will be killed unless Zorro reveals his true identity. I wanted to bring historical themes and parallels into the piece, such as with the opium wars in China, and the exploitation and destruction of indigenous races.
The second story, Love Never Ends, sees an ex-lover resurrected from the dead. When he learns his ex-wife is to be wed again, he seeks revenge. Unlike most zombie films, the zombie cannot simply be killed by a gunshot; it will take a lot more! I’ve also introduced new characters, such as the gypsy fortuneteller Mirella, and a new love interest, Carmelita. I also want to create more of an insight into Zorro over the series. Here, we learn of his penchant for seeing into the future.”

CONTACT DETAILS
Email: sorabdelrio@silverfoxcomics.com.au

For more information about Silver Fox Comics, please visit them on-line at http://www.silverfoxcomics.com.au/ and www.facebook.com/silverfoxcomics.

Zorro®, Zorro is © 2011 Zorro Productions Inc. All rights reserved. All names, characters, events and locales in this publication are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead) is entirely fictional, events or places, is coincidental. No portion of this book may be reproduced by any means (digital or print) without the express permission of Silver Fox Comics except for review purposes.
*Edited by request of Publisher and Zorro Productions, Inc. 

Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension

phineas-and-feb-300x418-1938719When Peter and Kathleen David rave about something, I tend to pay attention. In this case, it was the Disney animated series, Phineas and Ferb, which they explained, featured two boys — Phineas Flynn (Vincent Martella) and Ferb Fletcher (Thomas Sangster) — on summer vacation. Every episode has them do some over-the-top activity that catches the attention of Phineas’ older sister Candace (Ashley Tisdale), left to babysit them, and she tries to bust them ala Ferris Bueller. Each episode ends with her failing. But wait, there’s more! Apparently, the boys have a pet platypus, Petey, who is secretly an espionage agent who devises ways to perform his missions without being discovered by the boys. Invariably, the boys’ activity and that of Agent P dovetail in imaginative ways.

Since 2007, this tightly template show has been enchanting adults and children alike, bringing in high ratings and tons of merchandise dollars. While the name was familiar to me, I had no idea it would be so fresh, cool, and original. When the opportunity to review this week’s release of Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Across the 2nd Dimension arrived, I couldn’t resist. The 77 minute movie takes the normal 12-minute premise and blows it up, letting everything that can’t happen on a typical episode occur. For example, not only is Petey’s secret revealed to the boys, but Candace finally learns the truth and catches the boys in the act.

Some act. The evil Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz (Dan Povenmire) has completed work on a device that accesses a parallel world despite Agent P’s efforts. And you know what happens when parallel worlds meet – chaos ensues. A chaotic show in short snippets becomes a sprawling, chaotic story that has doubles meeting, worlds crossed over, secrets revealed, flaws exposed, and regardless of world, oblivious parents.

The entertaining and at times hilarious story does overstay its welcome. The concept is stretched just beyond its limits with songs and action sequences and grew tedious towards the end. I gather the telefilm, which first aired this summer to astonishing ratings, has visual and verbal cues to armloads of previous episodes, although that did not diminish the charm of the adventure. There are many hilarious bits for the adults and plenty of slapstick hijinks for the young at heart. It’s chock full of music, too, with many many songs, about half of which are on the commercial CD and ten more can be found on a Walmart exclusive version. (more…)

Win a private Jungle Cruise tour skippered by John Lasseter

  • News
  • August 23, 2011

From late 1977 through spring 1978, John Lasseter, before becoming chief creative officer at Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios and principal creative advisor for Walt Disney Imagineering, worked at Disneyland, and was a skipper on the Jungle Cruise attraction. Recently, a search for a photo of John skippering the Jungle Cruise came up empty. Surely there must be a photo of Skipper John somewhere? To find one, Pixar has created a contest: the first person to submit a verifiable photo of John as the skipper of the Jungle Cruise from 1977 will win a trip for 4 to the grand opening of Cars Land at Disney California Adventure in summer 2012, and a ride on the Jungle Cruise skippered by none other than John himself!

For details on how to submit, visit Johnofthejungle.com or the official Disney•Pixar Facebook page

Mickey Rooney Talks The Fox and the Hound

  • News
  • August 13, 2011

mickey-rooney-photo-6183215In the mid-1920’s, an up-and-coming young animator had a brief encounter with an up-and-coming child star.  Although they only met in passing, Mickey Rooney remembers Walt Disney as “a very charming man.”  More than 50 years later, in 1981, Rooney would find himself starring in one of Walt Disney Studio’s most beloved animated films, The Fox and the Hound.  Rooney voiced the character of Tod, an orphaned fox cub who forms an unlikely friendship with Copper, a coonhound voiced by Kurt Russell.   The film also stars Pearl Bailey, Pat Buttram and Jack Albertson.  The Fox and the Hound and its sequel The Fox and the Hound 2 will be released in a 30th Anniversary 2-Movie Collection on August 9, 2011.

Although he is quick to deny it, Mickey Rooney is the definition of a Hollywood legend.  With a career that spans nine decades, he has defied the odds in an industry that often typecasts performers.  He got his start crashing his parents’ vaudeville act while still a toddler and, just a few years later, he became a silent film sensation; starring in the popular “Mickey McGuire” shorts.  In the 1930’s Rooney made a successful transition to sound films, headlining in the long-running “Andy Hardy” series and teaming with his friend Judy Garland in such classic musicals as Strike Up the Band and Girl Crazy.  Rooney was awarded a special Juvenile Oscar at the 1939 Academy Awards ceremony and the next year was nominated in the competitive Best Actor category for Babes in Arms, the first of four Oscar nominations.   He also won an honorary Academy Award in 1983 in recognition of 50 years of memorable film performances.  Having also won an Emmy and two Golden Globes by that time, many actors would be content to rest on such precious laurels but Mickey Rooney, now 90, continues to work on stage, screen and television and recently wrapped a cameo role in the highly anticipated Walt Disney Pictures Holiday 2011 release, The Muppets. (more…)

Monday Mix-Up: Sam The Eagle as Captain America

  • News
  • July 25, 2011

Wait, wait, wait… are there Muppets in this poster?

In spite of the giggle factor, this may be an important milestone– this may be the first official crossover between Disney and Marvel properties, promoting both Captain America: The First Avenger in theaters now, and The Muppets coming out in November.

Superman: Man of Steel Moved to 2013

  • News
  • July 22, 2011

Time to adjust your movie calendars as Warner Bros admitted today that having Zack Snyder’s Superman: Man of Steel film for Christmas 2012 was impossible. The new date is now June 14, nestled between two Marvel sequels.

Given the effects-heavy movie’s post-production requirements and the fact is has yet to start shooting, it seems likely that production concerns forced Warner’s hand. It’s also theorized that the testosterone-laden film might not play as well during the holidays given the Academy Award contenders that normally crowd multiplexes during that time of the year. There are also other genre competitors that will suck up screens, complicating the planned release including Warners’ own first installment of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit in addition to Disney’s planned reboot of The Lone Ranger. Back in the far simpler 1970s, Superman the Movie opened for the holidays and performed quite well and Warners was hoping for lightning to strike twice.

Instead, it will now face off against similar competition bringing May 3 with Iron Man 3. DreamWorks’ kid-oriented Turbo precedes Superman on June 7 and is followed by Pixar’s Monster University on June 21 so there’s little live-action, adult competition and now studios know which weekends to avoid. Marvel’s Thor 2 follows a month later on July 26.

The extra six months will afford Snyder plenty of time to perfect the script, which has to be note perfect after the disappointment of this summer’s Green Lantern. It also means producer Christopher Nolan will be done with his The Dark Knight Rises in plenty of time to have a more active role in overseeing the production.

TimeWarner has to release the film in 2013 to satisfy legal obligations arising from the Siegel Estate’s lawsuit that saw elements of the Superman mythos awarded to them, the repercussions of which are being seen this fall in the Superman reboot from TW’s DC Entertainment division.

JOHN CARTER TRAILER LIVE!

  • News
  • July 14, 2011

johncarter-poster1-600x889-6579151

Long on the list of Pulp classics fans have been waiting to get a proper treatment from Hollywood, Edgar Rice Burroughs’ classic tale of a soldier from Earth transported to a savage Mars populated with warring tribes and exotic creatures may actually be getting the due it deserves.  Follow the link below to the first trailer from Disney’s upcoming JOHN CARTER!

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2011/07/14/the-first-trailer-for-john-carter/

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