It can be argued that Marvin Gaye’s most famous single was released in 1968, entitled “ Ain’t Nothing Like The Real Thing.” This song was loud in my head as I watch the reboot of National Lampoon’s Vacation unfold on the screen last week. You can try really hard to recapture the magic of the original movie but, like the song says, “Ain’t nothing like the real thing.” Watching this Vacation unfold was the equivalent of watching a dumpster fire. About halfway through, I wanted to wave the white flag and give up to end the sheer suffering that those actors must have felt for being part of such a terrible premise for a reboot.
The reboot centers around Rusty Griswold (Ed Helms) and his fond memories of his childhood trip to Wally World. Rusty surprises his wife (Christina Applegate) and two sons with a cross country trip to America’s #1 fun park. Soon, the promise of the trip turns into one mishap after another for the Griswolds, and anyone who is around them.
This film was doomed from the start because of its choice in leading men: Ed Helms. Helms was never going to be able to live up to the standard set by Chevy Chase, still considered one of the best comedic actors of a generation. Chase was the main reason the original Vacation worked. My mom to this day will watch National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation because she needs her dose of Chevy during the silly season. Ed Helms is best suited as a supporting actor. He has never truly been able to carry a movie, and he falters here.
Christina Applegate was another terrible casting choice as Rusty’s wife. Watching her on screen in the movie was as exciting as drinking tap water. I didn’t buy her. Applegate’s character has a very shady past that we find out in the course of the movie, and nothing she did made me even remotely think that she could have done the things.
Vacation also tried to be a little risqué, teasing with the edge but never going over. Why Not?! It could have been funnier if they had gone all in. If you saw the red-band trailer, it gives the impression that the whole movie is raunchy. I’m here to tell you that those edgy moments are basically entirely in the trailer. To be honest, I was drawn in by the trailer, yet when I watched this movie unfold, stunned silence was much more prevalent than laughter.
Overall, I feel that some movies are best left alone. How can you compete with the legacy set by the original Vacation movie? There is a scene in the movie where the two sons are fighting and one of them tries to suffocate the other one with a plastic bag. I was so not into this movie that I found myself wanting to be the kid inside the bag. At least I would black out eventually and the pain would end.
If you are looking for laughs, I highly recommend you checking out the real thing (the original Vacation). If you choose to see Vacation you will just pay to watch a cinematic dumpster fire.
During San Diego Comic Con 2016, Warner Bros. Animation announced that they will be tackling Alan Moore’s much lauded graphic novel “The Killing Joke” . Speculation ran rampant as to who would voice “The Joker” with Mark Hamill, the man who has voiced the character since the original Batman animated series was a fan favorite.
The actor expressed interest in returning to the role shortly after the announcement and now Collider reports that the actor will indeed be back to reprise the role and has, in fact, recorded his voice acting already! This is great news for Batman fans as Hamill has been the definitive voice for the character in animation and is a sure fit for The Joker’s most loved tale. Mark Hamill has voiced ‘The Joker’ in Batman: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond: Return of The Joker and more recently in all three of the main Arkham video games.
Batman: The Killing Joke will be released direct to video and digitally next year. Stay tuned on MFR for updates on the project.
This second season of True Detective has finally found the ability to set itself apart from the first season. Not that its surpassed the first season, not by a mile, but season 2 has definitely found its own footing. While the first three episodes were aimless and messy, since episode four and the shootout we have dived deep into this world, fleshing out storylines and characters leading up to the final two episodes of this much maligned series.
* Frank – Vince Vaughn has been the target of derision for just about everyone. But his performance in the last two episodes has layered Vaughn’s character. Here, Frank is falling deeper and deeper into the desperate depths of his former life, beginning the episode with a subtle standoff between he and Velcro – the cliffhanger in episode 5 – who is certain he was set up. Vaughn encapsulates the appropriate weariness of Frank, and while he may not be able to handle the dense dialogue Pizzolatto spits out, his imposing physicality has become a benefit.
* Paul – We got very little from Woodrough this time around outside of the procedural at the end, where he and Velcro are in charge of protecting Bezzerides while she scours an Eyes Wide Shut-meets-Brian DePalma sex party in search of a missing girl. This is merely an idication that the next, penultimate episode will be heavy with Paul’s home life, which may not be the best idea.
* Ray – Oh, Ray. Poor, pitiful Ray has a rough time in Church in Ruins. After getting his life squared away, the unreasonable request of his ex-wife to have a paternity test rears its ugly head. His scene with his son is the most awkward moment in the entire episode, an episode containing a sex party, mind you. After the supervised visit, Ray goes off the rails in only the way Ray can do, snorting all the cocaine in Los Angeles and killing a fifth of whiskey. The scene might be poignant, but it’s played with a corny angle of overkill. Thankfully, Ray comes to his senses after wrecking his entire house and destroying all his son’s airplane models, and gives up the ghost that is his relationship with his son. It is a moment that could have been powerful, but sticks out and feels forced.
Not to mention Ray’s meeting and subsequent threat to his wife’s real rapist. The threat, involving cheese graters and such, feels trite.
*Ani – This entire episode was leading up to Ani’s dalliance with a sex party that would make Stanley Kubrick blush. Ani, under the influence of Molly, must navigate her way past horny bureaucrats and guards in order to save her missing person. The sequence is the pinnacle of the entire second season of True Detective, a testament to solid writing, sound tension, and a callback to both David Lynch and Brian DePalma. We also get a reference to Ani’s sexual hangups, personified by one of her father’s drifter hippies who molested her as a child. Overall, this episode was Ani focused, and visceral because of this.
True Detective season 2 has found its own individual groove, finally shedding itself from the shadows of the debut season. While I’m still unsure what Frank was doing the entire episode, but I can look past any sort of plot convolutions in lieu of a stronger overall story. The best thing about this all is that it is making me wait feverishly for episode 7.
While taking questions at Otakon 2015, MAPPA and Madhouse founder Masao Maruyama indicated that anime director Satoshi Kon’s incomplete final film, Yume Miru Kikai (Dreaming Machine) is still in production, well sorta. However, getting enough money to finance the film is one considerable challenge, the more difficult constraint is finding someone as talented as Satoshi Kon to pick up the pieces and do it justice. Unfortunately, at the current time, no one is able to match Kon’s skill level. Maybe someday soon we’ll have someone step up and take the torch that’s been upheld for too long.
Highly regardly anime director Satoshi Kon (Perfect Blue, Millennium Actress, Tokyo Godfathers, Paranoia Agent, Paprika) passed away of pancreatic cancer in August of 2010. In 2009, he described his final project:
“The title will be Yume-Miru Kikai. In English, it will be The Dream Machine. On the surface, it’s going to be a fantasy-adventure targeted at younger audiences. However, it will also be a film that people who have seen our films up to this point will be able to enjoy. So it will be an adventure that even older audiences can appreciate. There will be no human characters in the film; only robots. It’ll be like a “road movie” for robots.”
The official site for Satoshi Kon’s last anime film Yume-Miru Kikai (Dreaming Machine) went offline in late 2012. (http://yume-robo.com/). The official blog is still alive, but nothing has been posted since June 15th, 2011. After his death on August 24, 2010, the anime studio Madhouse tried to finish the film and officially announced it resumed production on the film in November 2010. Masao Maruyama, the founder of Madhouse, indicated that production of the film had been halted due to lack of finances at Otakon in August 2011.
This article will be full of Captain America: Civil War spoilers, do not proceed any further if you’ve never read the comic books associated with the storyline. This is your final warning.
In the comic books, Civil War ends when Captain America surrenders because innocent people are getting hurt. There are events that set up Civil War as well. Hulk goes into space, Thor takes a nap, Hawkeye and Vision are killed off. These events take the powerful characters that could end Civil War in one punch off the board. The death of Hawkeye and Vision take the voices of reason off the board too.
At the end of Civil War Captain America is killed by Crossbones as he escorted to the courthouse. Bucky Barnes then takes over as Captain America.
Currently in Marvel Cinematic Universe, Hulk is now missing (could be in space) and Thor is off Earth on a mission. The powerful characters have been removed from the board to set up Civil War.
Now enter in Jeremmy Renner talking to ScreenRant while promoting Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation. Renner was asked about the how much screen time he would get in Captain America: Civil War.
“Yeah, yeah. It’s more active. A lot of fun stuff happening in that one. I can’t speak too much for it. They’re still filming that sucker right now. But yeah, there’s a lot of stuff happening in that one physically for me anyway. Then who knows in the future? I don’t know what’s going to happen,” said Renner.
In the video below, Renner gives a cryptic “Then who knows in the future?” Could they kill Hawkeye off in Captain America: Civil War and then resurrect him Avengers: Infinity War. We don’t know what side Hawkeye is on in Civil War but his death would make Captain America and Iron Man stop fighting.
“They’re not big on replacing people and characters so much, which I think is smart, because there’s so many different characters. I think there’s going to be a lot of new faces coming up in that world. I’m happy just to be a part of that big universe,” said Renner.
Set for release in the United States on May 6, 2016, “Captain America: Civil War” is directed by Anthony and Joe Russo (Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Community”) from a screenplay by Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely (“Captain America: The Winter Solider,” Marvel’s “Captain America: The First Avenger”). The film returns Chris Evans (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” Marvel’s “Avengers: Age of Ultron”) as the iconic Super Hero character Steve Rogers/Captain America along with Robert Downey Jr. (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” Marvel’s “Iron Man 3”) as Tony Stark/Iron Man, Scarlett Johansson (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”) as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, Sebastian Stan (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Captain America: The First Avenger”) as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier, Anthony Mackie (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”) as Sam Wilson/Falcon, Paul Bettany (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Iron Man 3”) as The Vision, Jeremy Renner (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” Marvel’s “The Avengers”) as Clint Barton/Hawkeye, Don Cheadle (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Iron Man 3”) as Jim Rhodes/War Machine and Elizabeth Olsen (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Godzilla”) as Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch.
After his debut in Marvel’s “Ant-Man” on July 17, 2015, Paul Rudd (“Ant-Man,” ”Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues”) will make his first appearance alongside the Avengers as Scott Lang/Ant-Man in “Captain America: Civil War.”
The film also includes outstanding additional cast, including Chadwick Boseman (“42,” “Get on Up”) as T’Challa/Black Panther, Emily VanCamp (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Revenge”) as Sharon Carter/Agent 13, Daniel Brühl (“Inglourious Basterds,” “Bourne Ultimatum”), Frank Grillo (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Warrior”) as Brock Rumlow/Crossbones, William Hurt (“A History of Violence,” Marvel’s “The Incredible Hulk”) as General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross and Martin Freeman (“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies”).
“Captain America: Civil War” picks up where “Avengers: Age of Ultron” left off, as Steve Rogers leads the new team of Avengers in their continued efforts to safeguard humanity. After another international incident involving the Avengers results in collateral damage, political pressure mounts to install a system of accountability and a governing body to determine when to enlist the services of the team. The new status quo fractures the Avengers while they try to protect the world from a new and nefarious villain.
Marvel’s “Captain America: Civil War” is produced by Marvel Studios’ president, Kevin Feige, with Louis D’Esposito, Alan Fine, Victoria Alonso, Patricia Whitcher, Nate Moore and Stan Lee serving as executive producers.
Directors Joe and Anthony Russo’s creative team also includes director of photography Trent Opaloch (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Elysium”), production designer Owen Paterson (“Godzilla,” “Matrix”), and three time Oscar®-nominated costume designer Judianna Makovsky (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”).
Based on the Marvel comic character first published in 1941, “Captain America: Civil War ” continues the lineage of epic big-screen adventures chronicled in “Iron Man,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “Iron Man 2,” “Thor,” “Captain America: The First Avenger,” “Marvel’s The Avengers,” “Iron Man 3,” “Thor: The Dark World,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron” and the upcoming release schedule, which includes Marvel’s “Ant-Man” on July 17, 2015, Marvel’s “Doctor Strange,” on November 4, 2016, Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy 2,” on May 5, 2017, and Marvel’s “Thor: Ragnarok,” on November 3, 2017.
Paramount has a firm date set for Richard Linklater’s Boyhood follow up.
Deadline has reported the film will drop April 15, 2016, originally up against the Judd Apatow-produced Bad Moms, which has since been moved. Originally titled That’s What I’m Talking About, the name will change before the release next April.
Richard Linklater’s story, set in the 80s, will follow a college freshman (Blake Jenner) during his first weeks of college as a pitcher for the baseball team. Linklater has called the film a “spiritual sequel” to both Dazed and Confused and, somehow, Boyhood.
Unlike most franchises, Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible films appear to be getting stronger with age, like the ageless actor himself. Rogue Nation, the fifth film in the series, hits this Friday with the fifth director, Chris McQuarrie. With so many different visionaries behind the scenes, each ‘M:I’ film manages to cop its own identity while still following the adventures of Ethan Hunt. Some have been highly effective, and one in particular has become fodder.
Here are the rankings of the first four M:I films, from worst to first…
Mission: Impossible II – John Woo’s foray into the franchise four years after the original could have been enough to end things. Woo’s slow-motion addiction and dove feitsh don’t translate well to what is supposed to be a kinetic action adventure film. The action here is more an attempt to show off kickass slo-mo than to captivate audiences. There is no anchor for the action, just one chase after another, shootouts upon shootouts, and some curious moments of doe-eyed naval gazing between Hunt and his femme fatale, played by Thandie Newton.
The villain, Dougray Scott, is incredibly passive and forgettable. And the plot, about a deadly virus, is clunky and tired, pushing along vapid stunt work. Woo’s action romanticism is out of place, dating the entire picture. The hokey early 2000s hip hop drivel from Limp Bizkit don’t help the dating process either.
And the dialogue! Pitiful. At one point, Anthony Hopkins – who is entirely unnecessary to the story other than to add some Oscar cred – says “that’s why it’s not mission: difficult, it’s mission: impossible.” Meta groan.
Mission: Impossible III – These next two could be interchangeable, depending on what day you talk to me. M:I III has one major advantage over every other entry in the franchise, and that is the strong villainous presence of the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. Hoffman plays Owen Davian, a sadistic arms dealer who is holding Hunt’s secret spy identity over his head, and when the picture fires on all cylinders, Hoffman is on the screen.The fight scene between Cruise and Hoffman is a highlight of the film.
As for the action, J.J. Abrams handles it competently, lens flares and all. The assault on a bridge in the middle of the film, serving as an anchor, is visceral but all too brief. None of the set pieces stand out as truly special.
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol –Brad Bird took over as director for the last entry in 2011. The expanding of Simon Pegg’s role, and the addition of Jeremy Renner infuse some new blood into the proceedings. And, unlike the last two, these supporting characters actually have, ya know, things to do other than sit around and gaze in wonderment as Hunt saves the day.
This fourth film was also able to inject the template Abrams laid out in M:I IIIwith a little testosterone, and added the crucial awe-inspiring action set piece. Cruise’s daliance atop the Burj Kahlifa tower in Dubai is not for the faint of heart. The only issue with Ghost Protocolis what comes on the back end, after the dizzying Burj Kahlifa sequence. I don’t remember the climax particularly, because it paled in comparison to the Burj Kahlifa scene, and even the explosive Kremlin sequence in the first act.
And let’s not forget, Ghost Protocolshowcased some of the most kickass “Tom Cruise running” moments in the actors long history of scampering across the screen. Dude outruns a sandstormand an exploding captiol building:
Mission: Impossible – Yes, the first is still the best. Way back in 1996, when this franchise kicked off, Brian DePalma directed what is still an incredibly dense, plot-packed, action-fueled suspense spectacle. The scene inside CIA headquarters, and the final showdown between chopper and train still stand out as the finest action moments in the franchise, because they have both stakes in the game and incredible physicality:
https://youtu.be/S8LGzbU3PtI
Surrounding these set pieces is a convoluted conspiracy narrative that is not too confusing if you pay attention. Making the villain Jim Phelps himself brings intimacy into the story. And much like Ghost Protocol, the team is a factor. These films are more effective when everyone isn’t sitting around watching Ethan Hunt dominate. The key to the original M:I was balance, between story and static. The tension isn’t just in those great set pieces, but in the plot itself.
Disney CEO Bob Iger believes that ESPN will move towards standalone service like HBO Now, were cord cutting consumers can just buy the channels they want.
“I think eventually ESPN becomes a business that is sold directly to the consumer. I think there’s an inevitably to that, but I don’t think it’s right around the corner,” said Iger on CNBC’s financial morning show “Squawk Box.”
This will be a very interesting concept to see unfold. ESPN would be one of the few standalone services with live broadcasts like the NFL and the College Football Playoff. These events have huge ratings and advertisers pony up big dollars for events where the consumer can’t fast forward through the commercials.
“I have very bullish feelings about ESPN long-term, but I’m a realist in terms of the disruptions of the business. I happen to believe that if we end up seeing more erosion in terms of the so-called multi-channel bundle, quality will win out and popularity will win out,” Iger said. “The business model may face some challenges over the next few years. I think long-term for ESPN because of the strength of its brand… they’ll be fine.”
X-Men: Apocalypse director Bryan Singer loves to teases his fans with Instagram photos while filming. The latest photo shows how massive a set they have built for the film as it looks like Apocalypse’s tomb.
Singer admits in the post his love of practical effects and memories of Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Ancient mutant Apocalypse is unearthed after 5,000 years and recruits his four horsemen; Magneto (Michael Fassbender), Psylocke (Olivia Munn), Storm (Alexandra Shipp) and Angel (Ben Hardy). The Four Horsemen of Apocalypse try to reboot the world through destruction.
X-Men: Apocalypse is directed by Bryan Singer and stars Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, James McAvoy and Nicholas Hoult, Oscar Isaac (Apocalypse), Sophie Turner (Jean Grey), Tye Sheridan (Cyclops), Alexandra Shipp (Storm), Lana Condor (Jubilee), Olivia Munn, and Kodi Smit-McPhee.
The film is set in 1980s and we will see younger versions of previously-seen characters.
X-Men: Apocalypse opens in theaters on May 27, 2016.
One of the biggest cliffhangers in television since “Who shot Mr. Burns?” is whether or not Jon Snow from Game of Thrones is alive. The Night’s Watch definitely tried to kill him but there are several theories on how Jon could survive. But HBO might have accidentally spoiled the drama as Cinemablend points out their dubious marketing campaign.
HBO sent out emails about a toy and merchandise sale they’re having on their website called “In Memorium: Fallen Fan Favorites,” which is basically a sale for all the merchandise of characters that have been killed off Game of Thrones. See image below. Guess what character doesn’t have any items in the sale? JON SNOW! Check out the website for yourself (HBO).
Does this mean he’s alive, not sure. There has been no official word. It would be funny if this is true and the mystery was solved by the melting kids over at CinemaBlend.
