Blackjack! It’s Pop Culture Roundup 21, Frens.
We featured an onslaught of Django Unchained images previous PCR installation; the film’s trailer is now live. View it in its entirety at the header above.
I’ll be attending and viewing Prometheus in IMAX 3D at midnight. This is happening; review to follow but in the meantime…a Prometheus clip from the Microsoft Press Conference E3 2012. Also, there’s a paper reincarnation of the trailer.
UPDATE: Saw Prometheus at midnight last night (Thursday late evening/Friday morning) with two of my buddies. Here’s my spoiler-free flash reaction. In the same week we witnessed the Venus Transit and the passing of legendary writer Ray Bradbury, I was thoroughly entertained by a science fiction movie. Prometheus is by no means a flawless sci-fi vehicle but it launches itself into my pantheon of favorite film-going experiences; it ranks right up there with seeing Jurassic Park and District 9 for the first time in a theater. The intoxicating imagery and the disturbing horror more than make up for the smattering of hokey exchanges of questionable dialogue and occasional plot hole. It’s not my intention to oversell this thing but I can declare that my usual and ridiculously high expectations were met…and this is a rare occurrence. I have a few laments. There wasn’t enough Stringer Bell or Charlize Theron, both actors light up the screen and are underused in this one. This sci-fi film could have used more elements of hard science. The high design and glimpses of a fictional narrative are there but it’s light on science intelligence, you know, that type of learned erudition to ground (or propel?) a good science fiction joint. My final gripe, no fault of the screenwriters and director, is that many elements were spoiled in advance with the promotion of this film. I’m usually immune to being frustrated by movie spoilage but they killed what might be the biggest scene, the climax of the epic, when they inexplicably revealed it in a poster. With that said, I loved it and will see it again shortly. Go see it, this is a recommendation; this is a must-see in IMAX 3D, it was made for the specific format. The opening sequence of shots took my breath away; it hits you from the onset. Fun times. I really don’t understand the current sprinkling of fanboy hate of Prometheus. I mean, I’ll take it over Avatar in a heartbeat; that’s just me and my personal preferences. Roger Ebert enjoyed it. Empire thought it was average. Grantland thinks it’s a striking film within an odd franchise. I say, “Go see the damn thing, give it your $20. Fuck it.
Check out: NPR / Damon Lindelof Risks The Wrath Of Loyal Fans Again (All Things Considered audio interview)
UPDATE 2: Ouch. A prominent existence of scathing reviews and being beaten at box office by Madagascar 3 ($60M to Prometheus‘ $50M) does not bode well for the sci-fi epic (note: Madagascar 3 has the advantage of a PG-rating while Prometheus is working with an R-rating). Shame, I loved the movie. Judging from Internet reaction, I see about an even split between bad and good reactions, that ratio includes both critics and fans. The backlash seems to be more rabid and vocal than the people that have enjoyed the film. The film is polarizing. Sad, I feel it needs a sequel to round out the story; the resolution and answers which viewers are deeply craving may possibly exist in the follow-up. The Economist thought it was more than disappointing, they thought it was bad. Wired says Prometheus does what all good science fiction should do: It uses scientific concepts currently out of the realm of possibility to provoke thoughts about philosophy and the future. A fantastic thesis written by Adrian Bott, Prometheus Unbound: What The Movie Was Actually About is a must-read. After reading, you will appreciate the film even more or you’ll be inclined to hate it with a greater passion. I blame laziness and ignorance on the reason people aren’t picking up on the allegories, symbolism and intersecting thematic elements of Prometheus. It’s all there, straight up science fiction, a hint of Event Horizon with a little bit of Old Testament and Paradise Lost mixed in. What’s wrong with leaving questions unanswered, vagueness within a plot, and inviting speculation within a film? Spelling things out and spoonfeeding answers leads to awful and cheap narrative devices like The Architect a la The Matrix Reloaded. Here’s a glib and reductive but pretty damn funny iPhone SMS exchange between Elizabeth Shaw, the main protagonist, and her maker, The Engineer. Richard Roeper, Ebert’s former co-host, raves about the film giving it an A+, below in the video. “Visually stunning, epic film,” he says. Poor Damon Lindelof, dude has been getting beat up by critics and fanboys ever since LOST. Lindelof seems defeated at this juncture.
Midnight strikes. Descending into the Writing Pit.For all who saw PROMETHEUS (even those who hated it), I am grateful you gave it a try.
— Damon Lindelof (@DamonLindelof) June 11, 2012
Breaking Bad premieres Sunday, July 15th. Here’s the official teaser poster. All Hail The King. The warehouse space King Walt is in reminds me of a penitentiary. Might Walter White/Heisenberg’s reign end by ending up prison? I AM THE ONE WHO KNOCKS! Goosebumps, Man.
A teaser trailer for J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek sequel.
Some impressive fanmade posters for The Dark Knight Rises by messenjahmatt via GeekTyrant. Check out the whole collection at the GT site.
What happens when you combine a contemporary classic with a famous film score? See for yourself. I was experimenting with editing movie trailers when I discovered that the opening music from Alfred Hitchcock‘s Vertigo happens to work perfectly with the opening “Bank Robbery Sequence” from Christopher Nolan’s 2008 blockbuster The Dark Knight. Watch closely, and you will notice that Bernard Herrmann’s music queues line up almost flawlessly with Nolan’s footage. Coincidence? We may never know…
The first image from the set of Iron Man 3 by Shane Black, which is due summer of 2013.
Two exclusive looks from the third season of The Walking Dead. The first is of fan-favorite Michonne and the second glimpse is of the despicable antagonist and character, The Governor.
While we’re talking zombies, here’s a nice and gory trailer for the UK zombie video game, ZombiU. By the way, Doomsday Preppers and End-of-the-World Enthusiasts, what’s with this impending Zombie Apocalypse? Secret CIA plot to introduce a zombie virus via bath salts?
Collider talks with Joel Kinnaman (the lone bright spot in the AMC procedural The Killing) about the Robocop remake. This reboot has potential with the casting of Kinnaman in the titular role and legendary Gary Oldman to round it out.
Paramount Pictures celebrated its 100th Anniversary last Friday. They dropped this nice poster of the studio’s catalog of some of their best films throughout the years. The poster was created by Gallery 1988 in Los Angeles.
Find out how the visual effects masters at Industrial Light and Magic helped bring the Hulk to life with this behind-the-scenes look from The Daily.
It’s Thursday evening and we’re off to catch the (hopefully epic) Prometheus premiere and score that limited edition poster. Wish us luck. Keep it real, Gangstas, Fanboys and Nerds.
–@teemunny
