What Is Techno Again?

The Crazies

Want to plunk down the cash for a good movie this weekend? The Crazies won’t steer you wrong. Just, uh … don’t drink the water. Check out the review at OneMetal.com.

Breck Eisner’s name occupies only a handful of film credits and claims even fewer directorial spots. The Crazies, a remake of the George Romero 1973 original, accelerates the rookie filmmaker into a potentially household name.

Welcome to Ogden March, where the Iowan fields reap plenty and infected water turns the kindly townsfolk into violent psychopaths who like to hum a creepy tune. Sheriff David Dutton (Timothy Olyphant) and his pregnant wife, Judy (Radha Mitchell), escape government quarantine and regroup with Deputy Russell Clank (Joe Anderson) and the teenage Becca Darling (Danielle Panabaker). They fend off “crazies” and elude gas mask-donning soldiers while piecing together the rampant disease’s origins and nailing down an escape route. But not everyone ducks the infection … or the accompanying paranoia.

Tags: Breck Eisner, Danielle Panabaker, George Romero, Joe Anderson, OneMetal, Overture Films, Radha Mitchell, The Crazies, Timothy Olyphant, Week of 3/1/10
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The Wolfman

The Wolfman released just when I was in the right mood for a werewolf flick. My money didn’t go to complete waste; in fact, I would actually stamp the movie as enjoyable. I do not, however, like my films stuffed with moronic romance.

Universal Pictures’ The Wolfman, starring the likes of Anthony Hopkins and Hugo Weaving, reboots the 1941 horror flick. Joe Johnston directs a remake dripping with wolfishly good action. Too bad the movie stutters over beastly romance that perfectly complements your sugary Valentine’s Day memories.

I craned my neck to absorb the breadth of the movie screen—an inconvenience that opening day’s limited seating and lonely front row availability guaranteed—and as I watched the rushing colors and headache-inducing action that made my eyes cross, I couldn’t help but smile just as much as I cringed. Despite whether you’ve witnessed the original film, 2010’s The Wolfman splays like a guts-and-brains mess. Lawrence Talbot (Benicio Del Toro), whose brother Ben recently tangled with a fabled werewolf creature and wound up dead and gross, returns to his home estate where his aloof father, Sir John (Anthony Hopkins), resides. Ben’s widow and beast whisperer, Gwen Conliffe (Emily Blunt), returns from London and mournfully gathers her late husband’s effects, but when Lawrence announces his oath to avenge his brother’s demise by seeking whatever or whoever went Picasso with his innards, she sticks around, apparently.

Read the rest at OneMetal.

Tags: Anthony Hopkins, Benicio Del Toro, Danny Elfman, Emily Blunt, Hugo Weaving, John Johnston, OneMetal, Relativity Media, The Wolfman, Universal Pictures, Week of 2/15/10
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The 3-Dimensions of Asimov’s Foundation

If you haven’t heard, Asimov fans, there are plans for a 3-D, motion-capture Foundation movie in-the-works. Few details have surfaced as of now, but you can read news of the director, co-producer, and script writer over at RadNerd:

This discussion somehow slipped through my sci-fi clutch, but Roland Emmerich will be directing a three-in-one film adaptation of The Foundation Trilogy, written by science fiction slash professional robot overlord, Isaac Asimov. Under Columbia Pictures’ banner, Michael Wimer (2012 and 10,000 B.C.) joins Emmerich as co-producer.

Good or bad idea? Does Foundation sail for you, or should they be adapting a different Asimov work?

Tags: Isaac Asimov, Michael Wimer, RadNerd, Robert Rodat, Roland Emmerich, The Foundation Trilogy, Week of 2/8/10
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Reel Rewind: Sunshine

My first Reel Rewind article at RadNerd examined Funny Games, a 2008 film by Michael Haneke. Now Danny Boyle’s Sunshine graces my television screen, a movie I’ve briefly discussed at my old blog. You can view my latest recommendation here.

We all fall prey to the same popcorn-stained habit every once and awhile. We pop in an old favorite or discover a gem that originally eluded us. And while Netflix queues everywhere continue to grow with movies fresh out of the microwaved bag, pausing to explore flicks from years past shouldn’t be a shunned endeavor just because it’s not the latest and greatest on the silver screen. If you’re on the same wavelength, then welcome to RadNerd’s new Reel Rewind movie review feature, brought to you by a whim and the sweet smell of nostalgia.

WARNING: SPOILERS!

Sunshine, which cast its rays on 2007, often struggles under unappreciative response and critical confusion. Simply put, the film could use more love. Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire) directs a visually momentous work in which Earth’s future astronauts, on board the Icarus II, must successfully deliver a payload to our dying sun. The future allows from some comfortable luxuries, such as cooking in space and therapeutic virtual reality rooms. Cruising on solar power and breathing enough oxygen to support the return trip, the crew expects few hindrances besides possible malfunction of the lone payload. Of course, the fate of the previous Icarus fleet remains unknown, and like all science-fiction movies occurring in the inky expanse of space, our merry astronauts aren’t alone in the universe. Chances are, though, you won’t suspect the enemy. Although the film accomplishes impressive visual feats and provides a superhuman aberration, the real strength can’t be found “on the surface of the sun,” as Cassie (Rose Byrne) muses, but within the characters’ souls.

Tags: Chris Evans, Cillian Murphy, Cliff Curtis, Danny Boyle, Hiroyuki Sanada, Mark Strong, RadNerd, Rose Byrne, Sunshine, Week of 1/25/10
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Reel Rewind: Funny Games

Somehow when I posted this article on RadNerd last Friday, I forgot to update my blog with the news! D’oh! Anyway, here’s a toast to my new Reel Rewind, which looks back upon year-plus old movies and reevaluates their worth. Funny Games premieres the ongoing (and occasional) feature, so I hope you enjoy it. And if you end up watching the movie (or have already), let me know what you think!

We all fall prey to the same popcorn-stained habit every once and awhile. We pop in an old favorite or discover a gem that originally eluded us. And while Netflix queues everywhere continue to grow with movies fresh out of the microwaved bag, pausing to explore flicks from years past shouldn’t be a shunned endeavor just because it’s not the latest and greatest on the silver screen. If you’re on the same wavelength, then welcome to RadNerd’s new Reel Rewind movie review feature, brought to you by a whim and the sweet smell of nostalgia.

Warning: SPOILERS!

First up in our DVD tray is Funny Games, a shot-by-shot remake of the 1997 original also written and directed by Michael Haneke (special thanks to a friend of mine for loaning me it). Simply put, it’s a thriller, but it does something a lot of other thrillers are too submerged in their own adrenaline rush to consider. The film savors every tear-enriched second, beating the reader to an uncomfortable pulp. There are scenes that quite purposefully drag on, but even in the deadest moments we’re kept on the edge of our seat as if we’re bound, gagged, and maimed just like the central family. Of course, that’s exactly what Funny Games hopes to achieve. Let’s take a step back.

Tags: Brady Corbet, Devon Gearhart, Funny Games, Michael Haneke, Michael Pitt, Naomi Watts, RadNerd, Tim Roth, Week of 1/4/10
Posted in Movies/TV, RadNerd, Reel Rewind, Writing | No Comments »

Sherlock Holmes Hot on the Trail of Action

I had been looking forward to the Christmas release of Sherlock Holmes for awhile, and I finally saw it yesterday. So what was my overall impression, and is the movie worth watching? Visit OneMetal to find out for yourself, and let me know what you think of the review or movie if you went to the theaters!

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle didn’t achieve immediate success with his 1887 craftsmanship of the ingenious British detective Sherlock Holmes, but when the master of disguise’s popularity became as rampant as the plague, there was no limit to his incarnations. Robert Downey Jr. is merely the latest in a long string of actors who have donned a tweet coat and deerstalker hat along with Holmes’ trademark pipe, but the actor eases into the role with unforgiving determination. Directed by Guy Ritchie, the newest adventure takes to the streets of 19th-century London for an action-coated mystery shrouded in black arts and parlor tricks—and of course, a healthy dose of logic provided by the eccentric Holmes and his often wiser friend and doctor, John Watson.

Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong), a devious and ardently feared murderer with occult interests, meets a death sentence by hanging thanks to Sherlock and his trusty companion, Watson (Jude Law). While it appears Blackwood’s schemes have literally been laid to rest, the dark predictions he spoke to Holmes in the criminal’s final hours begin to surface when the dead man is spotted wandering about his burial grounds. As Watson endeavors to keep his marriage proposal intact despite Holmes’ brash interference, the duo investigate the strange new occurrences jeopardizing London’s elite. The puzzle becomes more convoluted once Irene Adler (Rachel McAdams), world-class thief and Holmes’ old flame, steps foot in London under the sinister employment of a shadowed man later revealed to be a professor by day. Conspiracy and deduction ensues along with a modern touch of action.

Tags: Guy Ritchie, Jude Law, Mark Strong, OneMetal, Rachel McAdams, Robert Downey Jr, Sherlock Holmes, Warner Bros. Pictures, Week of 12/28/09
Posted in Movies/TV, OneMetal, Reviews, Writing | 7 Comments »

Game Over: Video Games on the Silver Screen

I really heart Spawn Kill. It’s bursting with video game action of every flavor, and it has a team of writers to its name who work hard and help make it such a thriving website and community. So I’m always giddy when they let me submit articles and get away with posting them as features. No, really. They spoil the crap out of me.

My latest read for them entertains the idea of why video game movies suck more often than not, and it mulls over possible causes and how they could be fixed … or at least bandaged to stop the massive bleeding. You get the idea, right? Make my day and check out the article by following this link into the depths of the interwebz (okay, I’m being dramatic, but today’s been an awesome day).

Video game based movies drag around an embarrassing history with a charm akin to a rotting corpse that was left in the sun, and frankly it’s not all that surprising. Some things own too much baggage to survive the transfer from medium to medium without dropping a few key items here and there, and oftentimes what does worm its way through the wreckage resembles a hideous mutant spawn that can barely manage intelligent human speech let alone impress anyone as some lovable lost puppy. Not much else needs to be said: Video game films are practically doomed from the start screen, much to the frustration of hundreds of controller-wielding fans.

But why do video games suffer from such a notorious reputation? Is it a crummy budget, bad casting, or just a bad batch of filmmakers and so-called creative minds? Maybe. But we all know that there’s too many awful video game movies out there to blame it on a handful of random factors. Books seem to revel in the highest adaptation success rate, with comics close behind and gaining speed fast. So is it just the medium? Video games aren’t always known for stellar storytelling, but die-hard fans are eager and willing to take up arms to defend their beloved games that, well … don’t suck.

Tags: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Spawn Kill, Week of 12/21/09
Posted in Features, Gaming, Movies/TV, Spawn Kill, Writing | No Comments »

Last Minute Holiday Buy Guide

We all know them. Every time the holidays roll around, we have to face them: Friends and family who couldn’t make a candy cane work with their aura. They’re the ones on our lists we save for last, because when it comes to a fitting gift, we’re left clueless.

Over at RadNerd I’ve compiled a holiday guide that’ll satisfy a variety of tastes—from music to video games, comics to manga, gadgets to cooking, fashion to nostalgia, and movies to books and everywhere in between. You’re bound to find a gift for even the pickiest recipient.

Head over to the website to check it out—and don’t forget to pass it along if you see something you fancy, too. The holidays aren’t here quite yet!

Tags: Gadgets, Guides, Holidays, RadNerd, Retro, Week of 12/7/09
Posted in Books, Comics, Gaming, Movies/TV, RadNerd, Writing | No Comments »