George Lucas "retires"

http://movies.msn.com/paralleluniverse/george-lucas-talks-star-wars-critics/story/feature/

So apparently he didn't like what critics and people have said about his decisions in regards to Star Wars.

First of all, you had a LOT of money to throw around and you chose to surround yourself with "yes men".

You came up with some great ideas but if I were you, I would have hired writers and directors for the prequels.  You have a lot to be proud of, getting the ball rolling in 1977 and forming the company Industrial Light and Magic.  You have success that other people, artists especially, pray to God for.  What do you care what some people online are saying? 

As for critics?  As a rule, most critics have on their list the kind of films that don't cost millions nor do they make millions.  It's their JOB to point out what's wrong and a hell of a  lot of times the public doesn't listen to them, anyway.  They certainly didn't listen when they helped the Star Wars films rake in BILLIONS of dollars world wide.

Ermy

Is it wrong that when I watch the opening scene in Full Metal Jacket and laugh?

 Makes me grateful that I never had to go through anything like that.

Three Guys Review Wonder Woman

http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/teamt/nash/specials/33934-wonder-woman-2011

Three guys from "That Guy With the Glasses" review the 2011 pilot of "Wonder Woman", a pilot SO bad that apparently "it became nuthin'", as Jules Winfield would say.

Based only on the review, I can see why.  It was bad.  In comic book movie terms it was Halle-Berry- Catwoman-bad.

I can forgive the limited budget.  I can forgive that it was the first episode.  I can't forgive that Wonder Woman was a jerk.  How often did she smile in this? 

SHE. 
IS. 
A. 
JERK.

It seemed to me that they were somehow combining Superman and Batman along with a public/secret identity.  How can an identity be secret AND public you ask?  Somehow it happens here.  There are a lot of legal matters here, apparently being a superhero will give you headaches.  That's not a bad idea.  Superman would probably need a lawyer as they explored in the film "The Incredibles".  However, since Wonder Woman is NOT  a nice person in any way, her legal team must be overworked.

Now she seemed like Superman

I always thought of Wonder Woman as the DC version of Thor.  I like Thor's look, it says superhero AND Norse warrior at the same time.  Maybe she should have looked something more like this:

Just a thought.

But they tried to combine Superman's public persona with Batman's attitude towards criminals.  Big difference between the two:  Superman has faith in our justice system, Batman doesn't.  If I had to choose between the two, Wonder Woman is more like Superman if anyone.

Basically they tried to make her SUPER tough and over compensated.  That along with a bunch of little issues, made the pilot weak.  No wonder NBC passed.  Stick to legal dramas, David E Kelly!

Avengers VS Xmen

This year Marvel has come up with another storyline that feels like just another gimmick.  It could be good, but then again Civil War could have been good, Spider-Man revealing his secret identity could have been good but they dropped the ball there, too.

The biggest aspect of Civil War that I didn't like was the fact that regardless of difference in opinions, there's NO WAY that Captain America would ever raise a fist (or a shield) to a fellow Avenger and hero.  Even if it is Tony Stark and he's being a douche.

I sure do hope that IronMan doesn't try to really take on Magneto.  I mean come on, that match will last two seconds.

But seriously, I really hope that the Avengers cleans the clock of the XMen because I just can't stand the mutants anymore.  Don't get me started on Wolverine, the most overrated character in comic book history.

I haven't been too impressed by any of the story lines coming out of comics.  They've had great concepts as I mentioned before but they dropped the ball, big time.  Maybe they should try some NEW ideas.

Batman: Year One

Batman:  Year One is another great animated film by our friends at Warner Brothers.  I have not been able to see it until recently though it came out over three months ago.  Directed by Sam Liu and Lauren Montgomery, the same duo who directed Justice League:  Crisis on Two Earths (which was awesome) and based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller.

I'll be honest, I wasn't looking forward to this one as much as other works by Warner Brothers Animation.  "Oh joy, another Batman title" is what I originally thought.  I'm happy that they've made two Green Lantern films (which are better than the movie that came out last year, by the way) but it seems like Warner Brothers isn't taking a chance with anything that doesn't have Batman in it.

This film is told from the perspective of both Bruce Wayne and Jim Gordon.  You immediately see Frank Miller's film noir style of inner monologue, the kind he used a lot in Sin City.  In fact, I was reminded of Sin City while looking at the mean streets of Gotham.

I was immediately reminded also of Batman Begins with many characters and plot in which I think was borrowed for Christopher Nolan's film.  Here you'll find NO bright colors except for neon or fire.  Make no mistake, this movie is not about Batman, it's about Wayne and Gordon.  If you're expecting to see Batman fighting the Joker you're going to be mad.  This is an in-depth look to the origin of two important characters in Gotham City.  Speaking of which, we see the corruption of Gotham and that the city NEEDED both of these men; one honest cop, perhaps the last and one pissed off guy screaming for vengeance.

I love how the characters look.  In the graphic novel, they look very "sketch like" I guess one could say, incomplete.  Here they're finished and each of them have a great style and individual look.  From the sharp clean look of Bruce Wayne and even the evil Flass, to the unmade bed look of Gordon who looks like a guy who has been through a lot.  Right down to Commissioner Loeb who looks like crap.  By the way, that guy's office is tacky as hell and I think that was the point.

I'm glad they don't spend too much time on Wayne's parents.  It's a story we've heard before.  I'm glad they focused on these men and it's amazing what they go through.  You really feel for Jim Gordon, being surrounded by scum.  No WONDER he made Batman an ally.

The fight choreography, whether it be Gordon fighting off attackers in the parking garage to Wayne fighting Selena Kyle for the first time as usual is top-notch.  The animation combined with great sound-effects really bring it to life.  Good they weren't afraid to show a little blood but not too much.  Oh, and shocking that Bruce just WAILS on Kyle who matches his fighting skill punch for punch.  It was brave of the filmmakers to do such a thing.

LOVE what Gordon had to do to his scumbag partner Flass.  I found myself laughing out loud.

I was surprised that I liked this because it's normally not my cup of tea.  Usually I'm more into the Batman stories where he's fighting a super villain.  Here, his first adversary is the police department itself which makes it unique in terms of a Batman title.

This film is worth a look though it's not my favorite among the Warner Brothers Animated films.

When we've seen Batman done so many times, it's tough to come up with something new.  Here they succeed in something new and unique among Batman Titles.  Where Frank Miller gave a solid foundation with the story, the filmmakers here polish the look and feel and make it strong.

Can't wait for Justice League:  Doom.

Mood Ring

Someone stole my mood ring.  I'm not enirely sure how to feel about that.

Reruns

I have not been much of a watcher of Television, recent years especially, I've been more of a movie kind of guy.  One thing I respected with television though is the fact that producers and studios seemed to be more daring and willing to try new things.  Movies, especially these days, have been churning out film after film based off of something else.  My first post here was about some remakes in the works and even though each remake has the potential to outdo the original, it's few and far-between.

Now television seems to be going the same route.  The following article from entertainment weekly is about multiple series in production:

http://insidertv.ew.com/2012/01/04/new-tv-shows-2012/

I'm NOT a fan of Sarah Silverman because of the facts that she's not very classy and let's face it, she just ain't funny.

Back to the subject at hand, you can see that a lot of shows are being remade including The Flintstones and even the freaking MUNSTERS of all ideas.  Many others are ideas based off of films.  Ironic how there have been films based off of television shows.

But still...

Things like this annoy not only myself but many other artists and creative people who HAVE ideas and are jumping up and down waving their arms trying to get someone's attention....yet no one seems to be listening.  Television is known for being more daring and wanting to try new things, but seeing what came out this past year and what's coming out this fall I'm starting to doubt that.

I know why movies produce remakes or films based on other forms of entertainment, I think it's primarily because of large budgets required for films and word of mouth.  If your subject matter already has a large fan base, then it makes one's job easier.  A television show can start off unpopular but grow in popularity and be made for a much smaller budget.

I suppose we should get used to things like this but I won't be surprised when most of the shows listed don't make it to a second season, let alone all the way through their first.