It's a new beginning for the 2 in 1 Showcase podcast! With a slight change in format, the guys decide to go back and talk about a character who didn't get his due the first time they discussed him -- Daredevil. Blake and Chase talk about the character's history, some of their favorite stories, the way the book is featured today, and rumors of a new movie. But that's not all! This episode features the first ever 2 in 1 Showcase Trivia Contest! In the picks this week, Blake loves the first Starman Omnibus, while Chase enjoys the new Flash Gordon comic! E-mail us with your comments, "Ask Chase Anything" questions, or anything else at Showcase@comixtreme.com.

Episode 88: Daredevil Redux
Inside This Episode:

E há ainda, obviamente, SAND SAREF (Eva Mendes), a ladra internacional de jóias com curvas perigosas. Ela é o amor frustrado da vida do Spirit. Ele a salvará ou ela o matará?

Na linha de BATMAN BEGINS e SIN CITY, THE SPIRIT - O FILME nos leva numa jornada sinistra e arrebatadora com um herói que nasce, morre e renasce novamente. ]]> http://geeketeers.wordpress.com/?p=137 Wed, 08 Oct 2008 00:16:10 +0000 bobtgoldfish http://geeketeers.fr.wordpress.com/2008/10/08/the-longbox-favorite-comic-movies/ [/caption]

Is there anything more polarizing among Comic fans than Marvel vs DC? Or "Who will win in a fight, Bendis or Johns"?

Yup. What is your favorite comic book movie. Alright so maybe in the last Year the DeFacto answer is "Dark Knight" but will The caped crusader and Heath Ledger make it to the pinnacle of My Top 5? or is there something else out there that lurks in the shadows?

Will I mention your Favorite movie? Or will I totally fumble?

come on in and see.

Hey Gang!

So, as you can see, you have clicked on a column about comic book movies. Now bear in mind I've never seen Spiderman 2 or 3 because I hated the original. I've never seen X3 because one and 2 sucked so bad. I'm not seen a complete hulk movie, because I turned the Ang Lee movie off and I really didn't have the time to see the new movie yet and it's not out until the 21st of this month on dvd.

The reason that this column idea came to mind was the release on Tuesday of the Iron Man DVD.  and rather than do the usual DVD review, I wanted to come at it from a slightly different angle.

So Here goes. and yes, there will be spoilers.

My Top 5 (Currently) Comic Book Movies.

#5: HellBoy (2005)

Now I haven't seen the Sequel yet, due to the time constraints, But the original Hellboy is a movie I can still sit down today and be perfectly content to just watch. I think that There really could NOT have been a better person to carry this Franchise as ol Red than Ron Perlman, he is so perfectly suited for this charachter than they could just have put him up there and forgone all the make up and it would still be perfect. okay maybe not, but you get my point. This is an oft used phrase but I think Perlman was BORN to play Hellboy. okay so Hellboy debuted 43 years after Perlman was born in 1950, so I suppose Hellboy was created to be played by Perlman.

But this movie isn't all about Big Red. There are lots of supporting characters that surround him in the BPRD.

Agent Myers (Rupert Evans) isn't in the comics and was created as the layman that we could follow into the world of the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense. Myers is a somewhat needed charachter in this movie as with out him there would be a lot of needless exposition just to have the audience be totally lost in this world.

Liz Sherman (Selma Blair) is in this version of the Hellboy universe a love interest for Hellboy, and starts the flick in a mental institution, having left the BRPD in an effort to control her pyrokinetic powers. Sherman is not only Distant but seemingly miserable too until Myers comes to her to bring her back to the BRPD.

Abe Sapien (Doug Jones, Voiced by David Hyde Peirce) is another of the BPRD's "Projects" known as "Blue" he is at home in water, and in this universe Somewhat psychic. He has some great scenes, when playing off Hellboy and Liz.

Professor Trevor "Broom" Bruttenholm ( John Hurt) Steals the movie, even with his limited screen time, and his Death 2/3rds of the way through the flick, He just commands the screen every time that you see him.  Just an amazing turn by John Hurt.

The plot of the movie is your average first film in a franchise story, the origin. Where Hellboy comes from etc. introducing the BPRD and the various characters. some great little moments that are almost straight out of the comic. This is a movie that is all about getting the tone of a book right while doing what needs to be done to get the Movie right. all the little changes, the romance, Abes psychic abilities, the addition of Myers all things the movie needed, that weren't in the books but they fit seamlessly.

#4: Superman: The Movie (1978)

The Movie that really started it all. Back in 1978 Warner Brothers Made us all believe that a man could fly. Casting Christopher Reeve as Superman/Clark Kent. Every superman movie, is going to succeed or fail based on this casting. It's been proven since. Not only does the person in the lead of this movie need to look the part but they need to have that inner strength that Supes should exude. They need that presence of a Force of nature that the Man of Steel has. Reeve had it all. In spades.

In My and many others eyes, Reeve has never been surpassed as Kal'el. Even though every superman movie since has ranged somewhere between underwhelming and flat out bad, in his turns as Clark, Reeve always shone. be it against Gene Hackman, Richard Pryor or Terrence Stamp. Reeve always held that Certain something that made him stand out head and shoudlers above the rest of the people ever to done the big Red S.

The a fore mentioned Gene Hackman also shines as Lex Luthor, Supermans arch nemesis. I have had a long admiration for Gene Hackmans turn here just being so.. perfect for Luthor, okay so what Luthor has turned into in the comics isn't the same but I'd sure as hell like to see Hackman tackle it.

The only piece of casting I have ever truly wondered about in these movies was Margot Kidder as Lois Lane.and yes even before she went feral. she just seemed a little.. off... compared to the rest of the cast, but even with that Superman:The Movie seems to just shine among the shadows.

Bryan Singer credited this original movie as a massive inspiration for Superman Returns. It's just a pity that the only thing that was put on screen in that movie that was even worthy to carry this movies cape, was Kevin Spaceys turn as Luthor

Back to this original move however, it happily takes the #4 spot on the list as not only being the one that started it all, but having a certain integral goodness to it that sparkles even now.

#3: Sin City (2005)

What is there to say about this flick that hasn't been said already?

What makes this movie so amazing? It's extremely hard to pinpoint. Is it the writing? The comic book panel accurate directing? the Stunning visual style? The Veritable Cavalcade of stars that line this thing? Be it Bruce WIllis, Clive Owen, Benicio Del Toro, Elijah wood, Rutger Nauer, Rosario Dawson... or the reborn Mickey Rouke?

The fact that you can't pin down What makes Sin City great is inturn in fact what makes it great. Don;t get me wrong each of those thing I mentioned above REALLY help (also note my not listing Jessica alba) but the very Ethereal nature of Sin City's Awesomeness is a massive thing.

The Involvement of Sin City creator Frank Miller, as with Mike Mingola in Hellboy's case, in the directing and writing of the Movie is another thing that goes a long way to helping Sin City stay so true to it;s comic book roots.

The interweaving of Stories, the fact that this movie isn't afraid to show that life is shitty sometimes,  that there is a seedier side to comics, and that some of our favorite characters exist in a very Noir style environment. something again that excites me. the fact that there are so many people that cannot even fathom that Sin City comes from a Comic is amazing to me. it really does transcend borders and genres, something that other Comic Movies have a hard time doing both effectively and well.

Sin City Tops the lists of movies of favorite comic book movies for all the reasons listed above,  and I'll be honest it's damn close to topping mine. but as amazing as this movie is, it just doesn't have what it takes to be number 2 or number 1.

Sin City is a great movie to show to Non Comic Fans to sum up how amazing the transition from book to screen can be. how rich and vibrant.

#2: Batman Begins

Batman Begins takes the Number 2 spot on the top 5.  I suppose the big question, Why? The Movie is damn near perfect, one little casting replacement, a few long shot cut in here adn there and you would have the perfect comic movie. First Lets Discuss the Idea of a "Reboot" since this is the first example of one on my top 5.  After the Disaster that was "Batman and Robin" (2997) DC and Warner Brothers took a healthy 8 year break from the Batman franchise. Something many people thought Marvel should have taken note of before trying to churn out yet another Hulk movie.

The Break allowed Warner/DC to re-think the franchise. to re imagine it as something totally different something completely akin to the feeling of the comic book. Something more Dark, Gritty and substantive and entirely less quirky than any of the four movies that preceded it. be they neon filled or Gothic Tim Burton fests.

The First big announcement that came from Batman Begins, that really cemented my faith in the movie was the attachment of Christopher Nolan as Director. Having seen Memento and Insomnia I was very very impressed with this announcement. then the attachment of Christian Bale to star as Batman/Bruce Wayne was amazing. This movie, With the exception of Katie Holmes, is filled to over flowing with Oscar Quality performances and actors even down to a few of the bit parts in Ken Watanabee's Ra's Al Ghul.

There were a few concerns from me at first, one that mainly centered around the tone the movie was taking,  and the casting of Cillian Murphy as The Scarecrow/Johnathan Crane. But both of these fears were easily put to rest the more and more that I saw of the publicity photos on the net. But there I was, opening night, ready. and damn if I wasn't blown away.

I saw Batman Begins 5 times in theaters, I cannot say just how impressed I was with this reboot, yes I know, 5 times is a bit much, but I had lots of friends that wanted to see it, and we could never really get together, and I loved the movie so why not. Batman begins was until recently, the best comic book movie ever. Question is, what could take it's place?

#1. Iron Man

Yup, That's right. Ol' Shell head takes the #1 spot from The Batman.I can honestly Say that I cannot find fault with this movie. The Casting is pitch perfect, the story is perfectly writen and the direction is on the money. What fault is there to be found?'

Lets Begin with Tony Stark, as lets be honest without stark being right, this whole movie would fall apart. When Robert Downy Jr. was announced there was simultaneously "WHAT? no way!" and "That's Brilliant" I was very much on the side of "BRILLIANT!"  I don't think that there was a possibility of anyone better being cast, many people think that Jr's past ith substance abuse and Tony's alcoholism walk a fine line, but with His undoubted charisma and good looks, Jr was perfect to look at as Stark, add in his Oscar caliber performances through out his years as an actor, And you have the perfect recipe for a star. and that is exactly what we got, the PERFECT Tony Stark.

Move From Stark to the Supporting Cast of Terrence Howard as James Rhodes, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Pots and Jeff Bridges as Obidiah Stane. The four supporting performers here are all, once again absolutely spot on. They nail their respective roles with what seems to be ease.

Jon Faverau, The Director does an amazing job all the way through, even in the climactic fight, where both involved are hidden behind masks, he manages to avoid what I have come to know as "The Spiderman Syndrome" where neither actor can emote through their masks. To combat this, they came up with a VERY effective "Inside the helmet" cam, that is absolutely spot on. Okay I'm using that phrase a lot, but this movie is just so right. So well made that Sometimes, Just sometimes, It defies proper description.

The movie embodies everything that made the Early Iron Man Fun. True now most people seem to think that Stark is a bit of a douche after everything with Civil War, but early in his Iron Man Career Tony Stark was a fun loving flirtatious billionaire and that is captured perfectly here. I'm pretty sure that there will be some kind of character development in the subsequent Movies, but nothing to the ends of the comic's current status.

----

So there we have it. My top 5 movies. Yes The Dark Knight doesn't even make the top five. Why? Honestly there was a little too much wrong. It was too long in my opinion, too dark (yes I'm aware of the title) and it just wasn't as enjoyable as teh other movies on this list. Even it;s predecessor. It was an excellent movie, don't get me wrong, but there was just a little too much wrong with what was on screen. It does take up the 6th spot on my list, that much is for sure.

So what do you think? Have I gone Crazy not including Dark Knight? What would your top five be? Even then what do you think of my choices? would you make the same choices or even say the same things about these movies? open up and let me know what you think.

So until Next time

Your Superhero

BobTGoldfish

Again many thanks to Frankie for the banner.

The film is a loose representation of the Battle of Thermopylae, where three hundred Spartans and King Leonidas himself fought against the great Persian army to stop their invasion of the Greek city-states.

What appalled me the most about this film was the distinct representation of Greeks and Persians. The Spartans and the other city-states who fought along were played by real life actors and actresses, and were seen as brave, strong and noble people who were under duress by the Persian Empire.

The Persians, on the other hand, were created out of sheer computer animation, and if they were portrayed by actors, they didn’t even look like humans. King Xerxes, for example, was seen as an androgynous weirdo. He stood somewhere around seven feet tall, wore a loincloth, had numerous piercings on his face, and had a voice that was reminiscent of an old RuPaul.

As for Xerxes’ army, his men were grotesque, wore masks so their faces were hidden, or were extremely disproportionate to the size of an actual human being. The soldiers that wore masks also wore black robes to cover their entire body, which also gives the illusion of darkness and mystery. Somewhere in the middle of the movie, a behemoth of a man was released from his restraints, given permission to fight the Spartans. He was an astronomical giant, and nowhere in the human’s evolutionary chain does anything remotely resemble him.

From my interpretation, I guess it’s easier to hate, dislike and side with the “heroes” when the “villains” are portrayed as heartless monsters. If Frank Miller depicted the Persians as normal as the people of Sparta, then I think everyone would be confused because we would have to work harder to differentiate between who’s good and who’s bad.

By having one group of people depicted like everyday human beings like you and I, and having another group of people depicted like monsters from a bad Halloween party, the answer is conveniently given to us without having to think. Without having to decipher over which side I should lean towards.

It’s easy to call someone a “monster,” but it’s easier to feel resentment and hate towards someone who actually looks like one. Whose face is so hideous and inhumane, that good feelings cannot exist.

Another thing that irked me was a quote by Queen Gorgo, Leonidas’ wife, somewhere in the beginning of the movie. As a Persian messenger arrives to Sparta and asks Leonidas to surrender, Gorga interjects between their conversation and says something along the lines of, “Only Spartan women give birth to real men.” As if the Persian messenger wasn’t being ridiculed enough by Leonidas himself, he gets more crap from his wife.

The movie was somewhat entertaining, but only emphasized how Arab men are heartless monsters who are weak physically and mentally.

I grew up a comic book fan, falling in and out of the habit as I got older. The times in my life where I stopped reading comics didn't have too much to do with the comics themselves (although they probably did at times parallel a downturn in quality in the X-Men, the primary series I collected), but more to do with a lack of funds or my other entertainment options taking up my time. But then they started making movies about comics -- more specifically, they started making GOOD movies about comics, and I decided to start reading comics again (albeit in much smaller doses).

So I write this list both as a fan of movies and a fan of comics. Thus, I'm also a big fan of movies based on comic books, when I'm not busy being a big critic of movies based on comics that fail to live up to the source material. This is a list I've been meaning to write for a few years now, and in that time, the list of candidates has only grown. Because the world of comic book adaptations has grown to encompass a nice variety of of genres and types, I felt a bigger list of 20 would lead to a more diverse and interesting collection than would a traditional list of 10. I'll admit, I haven't seen every comic book movie released, but I have seen every one that's been released that I plan on seeing (meaning that if I haven't seen a movie by now, I probably never will, because I've heard it sucks).

But first, I'll clarify what I mean by "comic book movies". For the purpose of this list, a comic book movie is any feature length film whose story and/or characters originally appeared in a comic book (and a comic book includes comics, comic strips, graphic novels, or manga). So films with comic book themes that didn't originate in the world of comics, such as The Incredibles, Unbreakable, or Hancock, don't qualify. Nor do sci-fish properties that originated elsewhere but have since become comic books, such as Transformers (not that it would ever make a list of mine).

The other thing I should clarify is what I mean by "top". In this, I'm mostly judging the films by the quality of the films themselves, and less so by how strong they are as adaptations, although that will obviously come into play. The reason this isn't simply a list on the best adaptations is twofold: one, I haven't read all the source material for every comic book movie, and two, some movies don't necessarily adapt one source as much as they borrow from several (that said, if I have read the source material, it would obviously affect my opinion of the film). Other than that, "top" is an amalgamation between "best" and "favourite". And now, on to the list...


20. Superman: The Movie (1978) - Some might see this as sacrilege, ranking the original comic book movie so low. But the truth is, the only reason I'm ranking it at all is to acknowledge the debt owed to it by the rest of the superhero movies on this list. Otherwise, it's basically unwatchable unless the nostalgic pull one gets from it is too much to resist. Christopher Reeve is great as Clark Kent, but pretty much everything else sucks, from the plodding origin story to the ridiculous plotting to a bumbling Lex Luthor to Lois Lane's "can you read my mind?" monologue. If you haven't rewatched it lately, do yourself a favour and don't. The movie in your memory is better than the one that exists on celluloid.
My Review

19. Ghost in the Shell (1995) - I've seen a total of three anime movies in my life, two for the purpose of this list (Akira was the other), so I'll admit right now that I might be missing another great manga adaptation for this list (like, for instance, the sequel to this film). I enjoyed both Akira and Ghost in the Shell for what they are, but its not a medium that I completely embrace (or understand for that matter). Still, you have to admire the ambition of each film, with Ghost in the Shell's cyberpunk themes resonating a bit more for me than Akira's... uhh.... whatever that movie was about.

18. Road to Perdition (2002) - This was one of the first mainstream non-superhero graphic novel adaptations to come out, expanding the types of stories that could be adapted from the comics medium. There's a lot to admire about this film: including Tom Hanks playing against type as a hardened hitman, Paul Newman as his amoral boss, and the moody cinematography of Conrad L. Hall. It's a solid film, but a little too sombre to the point of dullness at times.

17. Hellboy (2004) - This is a very enjoyable movie, but I still consider it to be merely above average overall. In fact, it's probably not as good as Road to Perdition, but I enjoy it more. Despite the imagination and talent of Mike Mignola and Guillermo del Toro, the only thing that keeps the film from being a mere pleasant distraction is Ron Perelman as Hellboy, and the attachment the viewer gets for the character. Which is why the more visually compelling and ambitious sequel The Golden Army doesn't make this list, because it didn't give us enough of Hellboy being Hellboy.
My Review

16. A History of Violence (2005) - It took me a couple years to finally see this (don't ask me why, there is no good reason) and in that time, all I read about it was ebullient praise. So it's entirely possible that my lukewarm reaction to it has more to do with my unreasonable expectations than anything else. But for me, it was a solid genre flick with a few really excellent scenes, but not anywhere near as special as I was lead to believe. And William Hurt dragged down the film a bit for me.

15. V for Vendetta (2006) - I should probably stop talking movies down, and start talking about why these movies are GOOD enough to make the list. I tend to do that with every bigger list, I guess to justify why something near the bottom isn't ranked higher, which is silly, since 19 of these are pretty good. So now to justify why I think V for Vendetta is a very good movie, despite what Alan Moore fanboys might think. It's true that the film trades away some of the nuance of the book, but here's a sacrilege opinion: I think the movie might've succeeded in improving on the conclusion from the book. Instead of another Moore anti-climax, we got an exciting climax worthy of the story. Bring on the flames!
My Review

14. The Incredible Hulk (2008) - This character just can't win. Marvel grabs back the character, gives everyone the movie they wanted to see full of big smash action without coming off as completely stupid, and no one cared, and after The Dark Knight, fewer people remember. I guess that's why you don't try to reintroduce failed franchises after a mere five years (I'd say that at least they've revived the character for sequels or an Avengers movie, if I believed for a second that Edward Norton would come back to do the character again).
My Review

13. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993) - As much as I love Christopher Nolan's Batman movies (and as you'll see I LOVE them), I'm still not sure if they're the best Batman movies in terms of truest adaptation of the character, because this film exists. It's not a top ten movie (mostly because it was originally designed to be a straight to video release, and despite its definite quality, it shows), but it's a FANTASTIC Batman movie, with all the hallmarks of the superb animated series.
My Review

12. X-Men (2000) - This is the movie that kicked off the recent explosion in comic book movies after disasters like Batman & Robin killed the genre in the 90s. Marvel dipped its toe in the water after years of development hell and straight to video releases with Blade, but Bryan Singer's X-Men was the blockbuster that led to those that would follow. As a result, it isn't a perfect film, as they didn't have the time or budget to do everything as well as one would like (as studios didn't yet have the confidence to spend the same kind of money they do now on comic book films), but it still holds up fairly well. Hugh Jackman made the character of Wolverine his, while the film admirably squishes 40 years of continuity into a comfortable 90 minutes.
My Review

11. Hulk (2003) - There's basically two schools of thought when it comes to 2003's Hulk: those who rank it amongst the worst comic book adaptations for turning the Hulk into a quiet exploration of fathers and sons instead of the explosive Hulk movie they were expecting, and a vocal minority who think the film a hidden success with Ang Lee, who took a summer blockbuster and decided to do something more conceptually ambitious. Given that I rank it #11, I obviously fall into the second group. Not everything Lee tries is successful, but I gotta admire him for trying. The sequel/reboot was undoubtedly more exciting, but this was the better movie.
My Review

10. American Splendor (2003) - One of the more unique comic book adaptations, the film managed to take Harvey Pekar's autobiographical musings, added about five levels of meta, and created a quiet indie that is far more entertaining than you'd expect the life of a gruff, shlubby iconclast would be. What surprised me about this film is how it managed to find the real heart and sentiment behind Pekar's story, while I was expecting a film that kept everything beneath a few layers of irony (although there's plenty of irony here as well).
My Review

9. Oldboy (2003) - Not the sort of film I usually check out, I did so in part because of its growing cult status and even more for the purposes of this list. So yay listmaking! Oldboy is a graphically violent, highly stylized, utterly twisted, operatic tale of revenge that needs to be seen to be believed. I'm not even sure that I liked it, but damn if it didn't stick around in my brain for weeks afterwards. Even if you might end up hating Oldboy, you should probably watch it anyway. Easily one of the most unique films on this list.

8. Spider-Man (2002) - The first great superhero blockbuster, I met Spider-Man with wide-eyed wonder when it was first released (even moreso than with X-Men two years previous). While subsequent viewings take a bit of the shine off the movie (it drags a bit in the origin section), it's still a fun movie that proved what the genre could do, bringing in the average moviegoer alongside the fanboys. For a long time, comic book fans were weary of big screen adaptations because budget restrictions would prevent directors from achieving even a fraction of what comic book creators can with their budget-free worlds. Spider-Man changed that, not only with its wisely spent $140 million budget, but more with its $400 million plus grosses that encouraged studios to invest in comic book movies, leading to some of the great films that top this list.
My Review

7. Persepolis (2007) - Not that one needs a big budget to make a great comic book adaptation. Persepolis was made for just over $7 million, or slightly less than what was probably spent on craft services for Spider-Man 3. One of the problems with adapting graphic novels for the screen is that they lose the visual flare that is an essential part of the story (as the comic book medium is more than the written story). Persepolis didn't have that issue, as the animation matched Marjane Satrapi's art, which was a large part of the film's charm. Without the art, the story still would have been affecting, but it wouldn't have been so special (which is, of course, also true of comic books themselves in comparison to books).
My Review

6. Iron Man (2008) - This one surprised me. Before the movie, I'd have ranked Iron Man as the top B character in the Marvel comics stable. His stature in Marvel Comics (and especially the Avengers) lore always gave Tony Stark the feel of an A-lister, but the reality is that his comic has never been a top seller, disappearing at times only to be resurrected in a new form, hoping to bring him into the A-list once and for all. So it surprised me that this is exactly what Robert Downey Jr and Jon Favreau were able to do, successfully bringing a less famous character to the general movie-going public, and making him more popular than he ever was in the original medium. Given their iconic place in our popular culture, it's not as surprising when a Batman or Spider-Man or even an X-Men movie makes a tonne of money. But when Iron Man breaks box office records, that says something about the movie itself.
My Review

5. X2: X-Men United (2003) - With the basic origin story out of the way, and budget less of a concern, Bryan Singer was able to build on the promise of his first movie in the series to deliver a movie closer in spirit to the comics. Easily the best superhero team adaptation (not that there's been a lot of competition), X-Men United delivered the big action and epic moments familiar to a life-long fan of the characters, managing its multitude of characters more effectively than some solo character sequels that get filled with supporting cast and villains. It's a little hard to watch this now and not think about what a lost opportunity X-Men: The Last Stand was, but that's hardly the fault of this movie, which has earned its spot in the top five.

4. Sin City (2005) - If this list were strictly judging the movies on how well they adapted the reference material, Sin City would win hands down. As faithful an adaptation as you'll ever see (and perhaps a bit more faithful than you'd ever want to see), Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller's collaboration oddly did more for me than Miller's original, 2D creation. Odd because they're basically the same thing (other than the odd splash of colour, the combination of three stories into one, and of course the participation of actors), but what felt a little flat and graphic-for-its-own-sake on paper came alive on screen as an audacious piece of pop art. I think a lot of what was so thrilling about the movie was how it used fresh technology to so closely realize the visual style of the book, opening up new possibilities for the medium of film in how it can adapt the medium of comics. Either that, or the simple fact that it all simply felt so cool. Sometimes it's as simple as that.
My Review

3. Spider-Man 2 (2004) - The first GREAT superhero movie, Spider-Man 2 took everything that worked with the first movie, and improved on them, taking out some of the duller stretches of origin-building, while heightening the action and melodrama that is signature to the series. Throw in an action-sequence (on the train) that might be the best of any film on this list, and you have the best movie offering from Marvel Comics to date. So far, it seems that the template for superhero films are solid first offerings that set up the movie universe, followed by superlative sequels, and then, thus far, followed by disappointing-to-downright-awful third entries. Here's hoping the next series on this list can break the trend.
My Review

2. Batman Begins (2005) - Despite the fact that I grew up a Marvel guy, I've always thought Batman was the coolest character in comics, and with Batman Begins, I finally had a live action movie that showed why. Christopher Nolan's reboot was the first live action Batman adaptation to show what made the character great, as opposed to a mere outlet for the stylistic choices of its director, and it had me completely geeked out from beginning to end. What's unique about Batman Begins is that its one of the few superhero movies that succeeded in making the origin story portion of the film as compelling, if not more compelling, as the superhero action that follows it.
My Review

1. The Dark Knight (2008) - The Dark Knight is such a stunning achievement that not only does it top this list, it makes the rest of this list look a little weak in comparison. The gap between 1 and 2 is considerable, as The Dark Knight managed to improve upon its predecessor in every conceivable way. The story is more complex and immense, the effects are more eye-popping, and of course, the villain is far more interesting. We'll be lucky if any comic book adaptations even approach the level of quality in The Dark Knight, much less surpass it.
My Review

But what about... ? (taking a look at the titles you may think I missed)
Batman (1989) or Batman Returns (1992)? Tim Burton is easily my least favourite director-who-people-think-is-good (as opposed to the terminally shitty directors whose work I never see), so there was no way these films, which are more about Burton's eccentric style than they are about Batman, would ever get a sniff of this list.
My Review of Batman
Superman II (1980)? There are those who say the sequel to Superman: The Movie was the best of the series, and again, I can only assume those people are drunk on nostalgia. Cause what I see is a movie featuring even dumber powers than time travel via the reversing of Earth's axis (the amnesia kiss? a removable, expandable logo-trap?) with wildly differing tones depending on who was directing what scene.
My Review
Ghost World (2000)? I'm obviously a fan of indie movie comic book adaptations, so where's Ghost World, the film of choice for hipsters everywhere, you may ask? Buried deep within the recesses of my brain, since I HATED that movie.
My Review
300 (2007)? A visual delight on par with Sin City (another Frank Miller foundation), 300 was just too dumb to make the list. Which made it another fairly exacting adaptation of Miller's work, since the original graphic novel was plenty dumb all on its own.
My Review
Watchmen (2009)? If you're asking about this one, then you must have stumbled upon the archives, as it hasn't yet been released at the time of writing (hey, glad to know my post is still being read). It also suggests that the movie is good enough to be up for consideration, which is heartening, I must say. I've got one question, random future person: who won the election? And just how small are iPods now?

No, no se llamará 301. De acuerdo a lo indicado por Zack Snyder director de 300 al sitio IESB.net, conversó con el escritor de la novela gráfica en la que se basó la cinta, el ahora también director, Frank Miller sobre la posibilidad de hacer una secuela lo cual habría sido aceptado por este último. La secuela relataría los eventos que ocurren en el período intermedio entre la Batalla de las Termópilas y la Batalla de Platea, imágen que se ve justo al final de la cinta, cuando el espartano Dilios (David Wenham) relata lo sucedido al Rey Leonidas (Gerard Butler) y a sus soldados. La secuela mostrará como los espartanos, junto con las fuerzas aliadas de la Liga Panhelénica, se enfrentan al poderoso ejército del Imperio Persa para un último enfrentamiento por el control de Grecia. Habrá que esperar algunos meses para ver que sale de todo esto.

Você só assiste merda, tá lôco

Esse post faz parte de uma série em 10 partes. Veja o índice aqui.

Piratas modernos gozam da satisfação de ter filmes á disposição de suas mentes desocupadas. Quando os filmes não existiam, os piratas ficavam o tempo todo jogando dados e sujando o convés. Era uma desgraça.

Sério. POR QUE não fazem esses filmes? Yoda pirata. Como Star Wars poderia ficar melhor que isso?

Mas um pirata não assiste a qualquer tipo de filme. Como o mercado cinematográfico precisa atender a muitos gostos e tanguices diferentes, existe muito material ruim por aí. Um pirata precisa saber selecionar no que investir seu tempo.

Mas mesmo frente á enorme oferta de filmes, saiba que não é tão difícil assim escolher um que seja compatível com nossa grossura e tosquidão. É uma questão de prática. Por exemplo, se você conseguir evitar todos os filmes onde aparece esse cara:

Hugh Grant. Tanga. Faz filmes boiolas, para tangas assistirem.

e também evitar os filmes onde aparece essa mina:

Renee Zelwegger. Gordinha em quem eu daria uma conferida. Mas só faz filme motherfucker.

você já vai se livrar de boa parte dos filmes-roubada que existem por aí. São filmes que atendem a um nicho muito específico de telespectadores: mulheres e tangas. Nenhum deles é pirata, então o filme não serve pra você. Sua mina pode, eventualmente, tentar lhe convencer a assistir a um desses filmes. Resista. Você é um pirata, você não precisa agüentar esse tipo de merda.

Ok. Agora os filmes para piratas.

Também é muito simples de escolher filmes não-tangas e que atendem aos seus interesses espartanos. Falando em espartanos, quero dizer que “300″ não é um filme para piratas. É um erro comum que muitos piratas cometem, seduzidos pelas cenas de batalha e abuso de mulheres que existem no filme. Mas lembre-se: qualquer filme onde os espartanos se depilam, usam sombra nos olhos e parecem um bando de strippers, NÃO é um filme para piratas.

LE-Ô-NI-DAS, querido. Que costas fortes você tem…

É uma zombaria a todos os valores espartanos, sem falar na propaganda homossexual. E nem vou falar do Rodrigo Santoro como Rei Xerxes; gaúcho macho não chuta cachorro morto. Frank Miller, o criador da HQ de “300″, deve ter ficado envergonhado; se ele estivesse morto, estaria se revirando no túmulo. Aliás, deve ter morrido de desgosto ao ver o que fizeram com seus personagens. Se não morreu é porque é tanga.

Orra. Cês são foda, mano. Nunca mais deixo você fazerem filme de HQ minha. Morri.

Com essas diretivas básicas fica fácil de entender o que precisa constar em um filme pirata, não é? Caso você ainda não tenha entendido, eu recomendo que assista ao trailer do próximo filme do Rambo; tenha sempre esse trailer por perto, como uma espécie de “cola”. Na dúvida sobre o nível de testosterona em um filme, basta comparar pra ver se é parecido com esse trailer. Se for semelhante, é um bom filme pra você.

Outra dica legal é reduzir o filme ás suas palavras chave. É só pensar: “se eu precisasse resumir esse filme em quatro ou cinco palavras, quais seriam?” Veja abaixo como tudo se torna mais fácil com a técnica de redução ás palavras-chave:

O Diário de Bridget Jones

Palavras-chave: Mulher chorando. Mulher reclamando que é gorda. Drama. Romance. Tangas. Sono.

Brokeback Mountain

Palavras-chave: Sexo. Entre dois caras.

.

Nenhum pirata que se preze vai querer ver esse tipo de coisa em um filme. Agora compare com as palavras-chave dos filmes abaixo:

Sin City

Palavras-chave: Jessica Alba. Muitas gostosas. Bando de cara feio e assassino. Preto e Branco com sangue em vermelho. Frank Miller sem tanguice.

Assassinos por Natureza

Palavras-chave: Juliette Lewis, pirada no último. Oliver Stone. Violência gratuita. Sangue pra caralho. Mortes sem motivo.

Platoon

Palavras-chave: Galera nervosa e pirando no meio da guerra. Mortes na selva. Mortes de inimigos. Mortes de amigos. Mortes de animais. Mortes de árvores. Tiros.ÂÂ

Touro Indomável

Palavras-chave: Boxe e Robert de Niro. Preto e Branco. Porradas nervosas no ringue. Tios gordões armando esquemas.

Kill Bill Vol 1 e 2

Palavras-chave: Uma Thurman ninja. Matando noivas. Matando bebês. Gostosas vestidas de colegial. Katanas. Pai Mei. Lucy Liu. Mortes. Mortes ridículas. Mortes forçadas. Mortes engraçadas. Mortes com mais mortes depois. Mortes no final. Vingança. Quentin Tarantino rlz.

Cães de Aluguel

Palavras-chave: Assalto. Sangue. Tiros. Sangue. Intriga. Sangue. Quentin Taratino. Sangue.

Scarface

Palavras-chave: FUCK! MOTHERFUCKER! DIE! Passando fogo na geral.

Então? Ficou ou não ficou fácil?

DESCARGA DIRECTA ALTA DEFINICIÓN 480
DESCARGA DIRECTA ALTA DEFINICIÓN 720
DESCARGA DIRECTA ALTA DEFINICIÓN 1080

The sad thing is that some of that information was indeed in the records, just not in a useful way.  Anyone who has any role in the production of a film can be listed in a record if the cataloger felt so inclined at the time, but their roles are never assigned and it's not considered essential information so it only appears sporadically.  

Which officially makes our catalogs less powerful than the IMDB, Google, and the spreadsheet I cobbled together in excel for my own collection.  And don't think that dvd's are a unique example, this is par for the course.  Using a catalog try to find comics written but not drawn by Frank Miller, novels written by the actual V.C. Andrews, or a collection containing the Raven by Edgar Allen Poe.

These are all useful, fairly everyday searches that are impossible to conduct using the catalog alone.  And we these are pieces of software we're paying small ransoms for, which are all the while becoming more and more obsolete.  And to make maters worse, we can accept a large amount of the blame for this ourselves.  While we're debating the practicalities of FRBR and RDA and generally aren't getting anywhere with a great deal of speed LibraryThing is merrily marching on with less than a dozen people on staff and have been implementing exactly these sorts of things monthly.

Why can't we do the same with the resources that come from the rest of the profession?

Of particular note are a bunch of graphic novels, some of which I'd read long ago, and some that I read for the first time.

Swamp Thing has always tugged at my heart - the misunderstood monster, sort of like Frankenstein's monster; yet Swamp Thing is gentle, only rising to anger and violence in defense of humanity and Mother Earth.  I'd forgotten how much the love story of Abby and Swamp Thing swamped me with emotion when I first read it, at least until I started reading "Swamp Thing: Love and Death" by Alan Moore again last week.  It still holds that power for me, and I actually caught myself being titillated by the "vegetable sex" episode (as Neil Gaiman calls it in his introduction).  The artists, Steve Bissette and Jon Totleben, know how to capture emotion and, well, sex, but without actual copulation.

I also loved the Pog episode, a tribute to Pogo; but it is very sad, and sadly, it does seem like something that would happen on this lady.

Hellboy sort of ambushed me.  I didn't know what to expect from it, and was pleasantly surprised to find that it wasn't torture-porn - I think I was confusing it with Hellraiser, because I kept picturing something like Pinhead when I thought of Hellboy.  At any rate, I love a world where people can address a red demon with truncated horns on his forehead as "Mr. Boy".  Here again, we have a sort of Frankenstein's-monster-become-useful-member-of-society - Hellboy, summoned from ??? by Rasputin, kills his "father"; but without all the moral agonizing and self-justification of Frankenstein's monster who took revenge through killing loved ones of *his* "father".  Rasputin pulls a Darth Vader by trying to convert Hellboy over to the Dark Side, telling Hellboy it is his destiny, this is why he (Rasputin, his father) summoned him (Hellboy) - and Hellboy kicks his ass, instead of blubbering and trying to commit suicide like Luke Skywalker.  But does he get the girl?  Or maybe she's his sister. . .

I remember reading one Sin City volume way back when, but only vaguely.  So I've started with The Hard Goodbye - definitely hadn't read it.  Marv is:

a) Paranoid
b) Heroic
c) Crazy
d) All of the above
e) None of the above

but is he really dead?  I won't know until I crack the next volume.

Heroes: Season 1 is 34 betweener tales about the characters in the television show - you can read these online at the Heroes website, although it is also in published form. It's very cool to see some background for the characters, and it explains a lot that one may not have understood from the televised episodes.

But my biggest read was Cryptonomicon, by Neal Stephenson.  This book made me a little ashamed at how much popular literature I spend time reading.  It is written for people with attention spans longer than a breezy 250 or 350 pages; it uses language and vocabulary in a way that people as well educated as myself should *expect* to read and use it, and Stephenson never dumbs down his plot or his characters to try to suck in a few extra readers; nor does he rely on (or need to rely on) sex to make the story interesting.  I was hooked from the first page.  If Neuromancer by William Gibson is cyberpunk, then Cryptonomicon is cybergeek.

I will admit that there were a few places that out-geeked me - being a nerd, married to a nerd, I was pretty much able to keep up with the techno-language and scenarios; I can see where someone who is totally uninterested in or unfamiliar with computers and cryptology might have trouble with this aspect of the book, but it would be worth skimming those parts just to read the rest of the story.  Which is primarily about people.

The story is set up as alternating timeframes, between World War II and the late 1990s. It takes a long time to get around to the point of the story, but the journey there was fun. I have to admit some disappointment at the way it ended - something like 1160 pages of build-up, 6 pages of climax, and 2 pages of denouement. Don't get me wrong, I loved the book, it's just hard to get let down on the ending. It's a problem, I'm sure, to end a story well - one of my favorite authors, Stephen King, writes incredible stories, but oftentimes the endings suck. And I surely couldn't do any better, I'm just sayin' ...

*******************

p.s. I actually started this post 2 months ago but real life intervened, to the point that I did not feel up to writing (see my personal blog for details - link is on the About page). However, I did get a bunch of reading done in the meantime. I will probably post about some of the books, but definitely not all. I'll try to be better, but I've got a lot more real life heading my way, so no guarantees.

Today's kind of a lazy friday for me but I figured I'd bust out with some more Miller.

Background: Well...I've already done Miller twice now, I think I'll let you figure out the information you want to from him. The series Sin City is 7 books long if you want to pick it up. Borders and Barnes and Nobles carry them. There is also an art of Sin City book that you can buy as well. Of course, it was made into a movie by Robert Rodriguez in a style that I think fit the feel of the comics.

A lot of the time Rodriguez just pisses me off, like Spy Kids 2 and 3 sometimes 1, but every once in awhile he does something that really shows off his talent as an artist and a director. Sin City the movie is one of those creations.

The comics were released in the early 1990s by Dark Horse comics starting in 1991 with their 5th year anniversary celebration, whoo fun.

The Comic: The one I'll start with is The Hard Goodbye. Of all the Sin City stories this one is probably the most well known and the most controversial. It was featured heavily in the movie and has the lasting character of Marv, an ugly muscled up tough guy who just wants people to be nice to him (by people we mean women).

A brief synopsis before I get into the controversy over this story.

So, it starts it with Marv in bed with a beautiful woman, Goldie, who winds up dead next to him. Marv realizes that someone has murdered her, and it wasn't him. This comic starts off with a bang. Sex, then the cops show up and murder/fighting takes place. It's a read that does not slow down for anything.

Marv takes it upon himself to solve the mystery around Goldie's death because she was nice to him. He starts going up the totem pole until he finds that the individual behind it all is a person with a ridiculous amount of influence and power in whatever state Sin City is in. I want it to be in Wyoming...

Murder, death, cannabalism, more sex, and drug use follows to a great climax and an interesting ending. Marv dies. Normally, I wouldn't tell you something like that but the controversy surrounding this comic actually stems, in part, from that fact.

Part of the controversy of with the Sin City comics is just "moral" habberdash. There's too much murder, sex, over the top violence, cynisism, more murder, naked women, abused women, apparently only hookers are feminists and even then. Take what you want from that. Me? I chalk it up to noir. Yes, all of that exists in the world of Sin City but regardless these are well written stories that hold your interest.

The biggest controversy surrounding this particular comic actually got TV time in the 1990s. I remember because I saw it on the news with my parents back when I lived in Pheonix.

A toy, by Todd MacFarlane I  believe don't quote me on it though, was released to commemorate the comic. Anyway, this particular toy that they decided to release was based on Marv in the electric chair. If I remember right the chair could be "turned on" and it would electrocute Marv. I've only seen it once since the news broke about it but I think it did electrocute him.

He was also supposed to talk, cuss or something like that. People were pretty upset about it.

I understand why but my question is how many parents where actually going to go out and by their kids a deathrow inmate gets electrocuted toy? A. I'd like to meet these fascinating individuals and B. WTF?

My Recommendation: If you're a fan of noir than The Hard Goodbye is worth a read. It's not the greatest comic ever but it's definitely worth the money and worth the time.  Pick it up and settle in for something that's quick and painless. Also, if you like drawn naked women than I suppose Sin City is like your porn.

♣ ♣ ♣ ♣ ♣

Scyo.

da: Cineblog.it

Ebbene si, verrà presto dato un seguito a 300. A confermalo adesso è lo stesso regista Zack Snyder, già autore del discusso primo film. Sarà un sequel o un prequel? Snyder si sbilancia e risponde con un enigmatico “Entrambi”.

Per l’inizio dei lavori sulla sceneggiatura, però, bisognerà attendere che Frank Miller finisca di creare la graphic novel che ne costituirà poi la base. La produzione e il regista non metteranno mano, neanche indirettamente, al lavoro che Miller sta costruendo, per non snaturare il suo modus operandi e la sua originale visione. Che sarà quindi 100% Frank Miller.

Di cosa parlerà concretamente il film (e quindi la graphic novel)? Dovrebbe essere ambientato nel turbolento periodo che intercorre tra la battaglia delle Termopili (di cui si narra in 300) e quella di Platea, la battaglia che vediamo iniziare alla fine del film. Un periodo di continui scontri e sanguinolente battaglie, come preannunciato dalla voce narrante nel finale di 300.

C’è abbastanza carne al fuoco per far felici tutti coloro che hanno amato il primo episodio. Adesso bisogna solo attendere che Miller completi la sua opera (ma ancora prima c’è The Spirit da portare sullo schermo)

fonte: Cineblog.it

   300 is one of the best movies of 2007. I enjoyed it a lot! Zack Snyder is a great director! And sometime ago a sequel for the movie was confirmed. Don't ask me why, but it was. I don't know why a perfect movie like that would need a sequel or even a prequel. But they want more money, don't they? YES, they do. That's why Frank Miller is writing a new graphic novel, the sequel that will be adapted to the screens later by Zack Snyder. The novel/movie is gonna take place between the battle of Termophylae, the one presented in the first movie, and the battle presented at the end of the movie, the one which takes place one year after Leonidas dies. This one year between both battles is gonna be explored on the sequel. Let's see if it's gonna be good. But also Snyder let it clear that he wouldn't think about a script before reading the novel. I hope they don't do anything bad, just for money. I'm waiting for something really, really good, considering the original film. Do not disappoint me, Snyder! Another thing I think about is how the movie name will be. 301? =D

IESB.net announced that Snyder will be directing a 300 sequel/prequel. Sounds lame doesn't it. They should just leave well enough alone, but in this day and age we should've seen this coming. IESB reports:

"IESB's Robert Sanchez spoke with Zack Snyder at the WATCHMEN preview held in Hollywood for press.

At the end of the Q&A session following a screening of the footage (which by the way was mind blowing and we will have much more on later), a journalist asked if the actors for Watchmen had a sequel clause. In short, Snyder said he didn't know if they did, but said there could not be a sequel or a prequel to Watchmen. He continued that if there was, he would not be a part of it.

This was a great segue for Sanchez to address the 300 sequel talk as he met up with the director for an impromptu conversation at the bar during the cocktail reception following the event.

So when does the second 300 film take place?

In short, Snyder says he's spoken with Frank Miller who will be writing and drawing the graphic novel that the second film will be based on. Upon Miller's completion of the book, then, and only then, will they delve into writing a script for the movie. Snyder continued and said he would not have any input into the novel and wants it to be a creation of Miller's 100%. Snyder also said it will take place between the Battle of Thermopylae and the Battle of Plataea, the battle that narrator Dilios is at while re-telling the story of King Leonidas and the mighty Spartans to a new group of warriors at the end of 300."

Ok, let me digest all this for a second. So Miller is going to write another novel before Snyder gets his mitts on it?  Am I reading this correctly?  I think I can deal with that. If a sequel to anything is ever to be made, my philosophy has always been to make sure you get the consent of both original writer, and character creator (if the writer had nothing to do with character creation, that is). Looks like only time will tell if we should ready our torches for a riot, or fill our cattle horns in celebration. Either way, this guy will be downing some serious mead.

Le poche cose che sappiamo sul progetto sono trapelate dallo stesso Snyder, il quale ha spiegato che il film sarà ambientato nel periodo compreso tra la battaglia delle Termopili, al centro di 300, e quella di Platea, la battaglia che vediamo iniziare alla fine del film. Così come preannunciato dal monologo finale di Dilios, le due battaglie sono separate da una terribile annata in cui gli eserciti si scontrano ripetutamente. Questa presenza di Dilios come voce narrante del finale potrebbe preannunciare un maggiore spazio dato al personaggio, e al suo interprete David Wenham, in questa seconda pellicola. Solo la nuova graphic novel di Miller potrà confermare queste congetture.

www.movieplayer.it

Novedades en torno a la precuela/secuela de 300 (hasta el momento, no se sabía bien que sería), llegan hasta la bandeja de mensajes de mi leal Hal-9000. Durante una nueva presentación del material de Watchmen, la gente de The IESB pudo hablar con Zack Snyder quien aclaró el panorama en torno al futuro de los espartanos. Demostrando que el escenario actual es el campo donde fluye lo innecesario, en palabras del director la nueva película se basará en la novela gráfica que está dibujando actualmente Frank Miller y que continuará la historia de los espartanos influenciados por las acciones de Leónidas. La idea de precuela se desecha de este modo, ya que la nueva película se situará entre la Batalla de las Termópilas (lo visto en la 1) y la Batalla de Plataea (La última escena).

En ese sentido, Snyder señala que está a la espera que Miller termine su trabajo para comenzar, recién en ese momento, a desarrollar el guión. Todo porque su intención es que el argumento sea 100% creación de Frank Miller, por lo que no meterá la cuchara dando ideas. Así, la secuela de seguro se centrará en Dilios (interpretado por David Wenham), el narrador de la historia del Rey Leonidas, quien reune a 10.000 Espartanos para enfrentar las huestes de Xerxes al final de 300. En IESB recuerdan que, entre una batalla y otra, existe cerca de un 1 año de diferencia. Así, de seguro abordarán el desarrollo y creación del ejercito de los 10.000.

A todo esto, ¿Qué tal si la secuela se termina llamando 10.000?. Es una posibilidad al menos, no creo que busquen un nombre muy imaginativo al respecto.

Frank Miller is the man! I love his work, his pen over papers makes poetry! One of my favorite movies EVER is "Sin City" it's a mastered piece, great special effects, and a stunning mixture of film noir - strong black and white contrast- and the comic books bright glowy strong definitive colors. "Sin city" and The upcomming movie "The Spirit" are based on comics and when you watch the film believe me it would be as though you're watching a moving graphic novel!! How GREAT is that! And of course if you're a comics/fiction/adventure fan you won't be bored. "The 300" was ok, i liked the graphics better than the story.

I found this cool countdown on yahoo movies!

STARRING Gabriel Macht, Scarlett Johansson, Eva Mendez, Sarah Paulson, Jaime King, Paz Vega and i hate the fact that Samuel L. Jackson is in the movie! that guy is creepy and he shows up in every other movie, maybe his time is over? him and Morgan Freeman, malaina!!

Suffering from very bad buzz ever since its second trailer premiered, The Spirit finally redeems itself with this pretty cool-looking, supposedly final one. I still don't think it'll be amazing, but it's a definite improvement from what we've seen before. Comic book author Frank Miller (300) makes his true directing debut here, as God knows what exactly his co-directing contribution to Sin City was, and he also wrote the screenplay, adapted from the seminal comic created by the legendary Will Eisner (Sheena: Queen Of The Jungle). Here is Wikipedia's description of the comic book series:

The Spirit chronicled the adventures of a masked vigilante who fought crime with the blessing of the city's police commissioner Dolan, an old friend. Despite the Spirit's origin as a detective named Denny Colt, his real identity was virtually unmentioned again and for all intents and purposes he was simply "The Spirit". The stories ranged through a wide variety of styles, from straightforward crime drama and noir to lighthearted adventure, from mystery and horror to comedy and love stories, often with hybrid elements that twisted genre and expectations.

The Spirit stars Gabriel Macht (Because I Said So), Samuel L. Jackson (Lakeview Terrace), Eva Mendes (The Women), Jaime King (Cheaper By The Dozen 2), Sarah Paulson (Serenity), Paz Vega (Spanglish), Eric Balfour (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) and (ugh) Scarlett Johansson (The Other Boleyn Girl) among others. The film will be released in several countriesincluding the US around Christmas, and in most others sometime in Jauary or February 2009. What do you think of this new trailer?