Netflix released the first trailer for The Land of Steady Habits, starring Ben Mendelsohn, Edie Falco, Thomas Mann, Elizabeth Marvel, Bill Camp, Charlie Tahan, and Connie Britton.
About the film: Feeling trapped in the stifling, wealthy enclave of Westport, Connecticut, Anders Hill (Ben Mendelsohn) retires from his job in finance and leaves his wife (Edie Falco) in the hopes that it will renew his lust for life. However, he’s quickly faced with the startling reality of his choices; he spends his days looking for things to decorate his empty shelves, sleeping with strangers and feeling terribly lost. Missing his ex-wife and on the outs with his troubled 27-year-old son (Thomas Mann), Anders befriends a drug-addicted teen (Charlie Tahan), sending him down a path of reckless and of deeply regrettable behavior. His shameful actions cause him to question who he is as a father and, ultimately, who he is as a person.
The film is written and directed by Nicole Holofcener, from Ted Thompson’s 2014 novel, The Land of Steady Habits.
The Land of Steady Habits hits Netflix on September 14.
One of Marvel’s hottest creative talents, writer Kelly Thompson, has been on fire recently. Her new series West Coast Avengers debuts and explodes with charm, character, heart, and all the adorable.
***SPOILERS LIE AHEAD***
Our beloved darling of Marvel Comics, Kate Bishop, is settling in on the West Coast. In addition to her P.I. business and new superhero boyfriend, her fellow Hawkeye (Clint Barton) proposes she form her own team to protect the side of the country left mostly unguarded–forming a new West Coast Avengers.
The lineup consists of both Hawkeyes, newbie Fuse, America Chavez, Gwenpoole and Quentin Quire. These are all Marvel characters we wanted more of, who recently saw a cancellation, and some fresh blood. It’s a brilliant move to have this lineup rise from the ashes of a handful of cancelled comics (America, Hawkeye, Generation-X, The Unbelievable Gwenpool).
Kelly Thompson has quickly become a top talent for Marvel, her Hawkeye was easily one of the best comics in the publisher’s lineup during it’s run. The more we see of her, the better. West Coast Avengers taps into the same vein as her other wonderful works.
This is a fast-moving train of fun that makes your heart happy as you smirk yourself into a coma. Thompson injects so much charm into her characters and immediately makes them her own without changing their DNA.
West Coast Avengers #1 wastes no time building on character relationships and team dynamics. In just one issue this already feels like a dysfunctional family that we could be willing to grow with for years to come.
The way Kelly crafted the reason for the team, along with the solution for their financial backing allows us to smoothly get going right away. The reality show device is a great choice for this cast as well as a great way for Thompson to quickly establish each character’s attributes and attitudes.
Artist Stefano Caselli does a marvelous job throwing us right into the action and keeping the tempo up. The interview moments and quieter interactions are filled with beautiful face work. So much of the character and charm that oozes out of West Coast Avengers comes from Caselli’s art, the perfect accent to Thompson’s style and voice.
Colorist Triona Farrell makes this comic pop. The makeup of this team allows her to use and blend a lot of purple and pink that give this book a lot of visual appeal. As always, letterer Joe Caramagna does a wonderful job turning words we read into sounds we hear. There’s a really nice collection of colorful and fun lettering on display.
West Coast Avengers wastes no time establishing itself as the most fun you can have reading a Marvel comic. There’s so much charm, character, heart and hilarity oozing out of each page. It’s impossible not to smile the entire time you read.
Wait, did Lucasfilm reveal former plans for a standalone Star Wars movie about Tatooine’s Mos Eisley?
Yes. And now it may never see the light of day.
According to Slash Film, Solo production designer Neil Lamont confirms there was a Tatooine-centric film in the works.
“We were just starting our work on another Star Wars spin-off and yeah,” he says. “We were actually just making our mark on Tatooine — which would have been interesting and some other new galaxies.
Just think; we could have seen a Star Wars film about the seedy and dangerous types that frequent the Tatooine spaceport. Or we might have seen Tatooine be the focus of an Obi-Wan Kenobi movie. Both the former and latter in-development projects have been often confused with each other.
While the Tatooine film is on hold, Lamont reveals there is still interest in revisiting that material. “So hopefully, if that comes back, we’ll get the chance to be able to do that further,” he says.
One of most famous part of Tatooine is the Mos Eisley Cantina. This is where Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan would meet Han Solo and Chewbacca. It is also the spot where bounty hunter Greedo would make the fatal mistake of blackmailing Han.
Who knows? We may very well see more of the wretched hive of scum and villainy. Maybe not in a solo movie, but Tatooine might appear again on the big screen someday.
FXX dropped the trailer for the 13th season of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, Wednesday afternoon.
Will Dennis (Glenn Howerton) come back????
About Season 13: Drink up, jabronis! The gang returns, mostly, in the next season of FXX’s comedy series It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. The gang has its hands full as Charlie hopes to have a child, Mac explores his sexuality, Dee takes feminism to new heights, and Frank tries to experience the greatest moment in Philadelphia sports history.
Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day, Kaitlin Olson, and Danny DeVito return to push the envelope on comedy.
The gang returns to FXX on September 5.
Are you still watching It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, what’s your favorite episode? Comment below with your thoughts.
Elizabeth Banks gives you a behind the scenes conversation about THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS.
About the film: No Sesame. All Street. THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS is a filthy comedy set in the underbelly of Los Angeles where puppets and humans coexist. Two clashing detectives with a shared secret, one human (Melissa McCarthy) and one puppet, are forced to work together again to solve the brutal murders of the former cast of a beloved classic puppet television show.
The film is directed by Brian Henson from a screenplay by Todd Berger and stars Melissa McCarthy, Maya Rudolph, Joel McHale and Elizabeth Banks.
The most recent adventure of Wonder Woman looks beautiful but will leave readers confused.
Wonder Woman has teamed up with a new hero and an old rival for this arc. After the new Aztek approaches Diana about a vision of an Amazon, they agree to work together to find her. The Amazon, Atalanta, disappeared to fight an evil entity centuries ago. Atalanta was also worshipped by another tribe of amazons, which the Outlaw, Artemis, was a part of. Despite their intense rivalry, Artemis agrees to assist Wonder Woman in this pursuit. The trio finds themselves heading to Central America to locate Atalanta, searching for a pyramid. They find a technologically advanced pyramid and deduce she is within, as well as the dark entity. What will our heroes face in the darkness?
**Some Spoilers Below**
Story:
When Wonder Woman, Aztek, and Artemis find Atalanta, the portal to another world is left wide open. Diana, understanding the thread this poses, leads the group through, finding the plane of Thirteen Heavens. As they travel through this realm, fighting along the way, they learn of its plight at the hands of Tezcatlipoca, a shadow god. He has captured all of the Sky Lords so he and his forces can take over Earth. Wonder Woman, Artemis, and Aztek finally set aside their differences and take on the God.
The biggest problem I have with this issue is an obvious one: the dialogue. Many times throughout the issue left me scratching my head in confusion. Steve Orlando seems to want to build an interesting mythos surrounding the villain. While an interesting idea, it would only work if it was spread out over the arc. The heroes defeat the god and leave in this issue. Throughout the issue, we are just expected to know all of the Mesoamerican references that are used in the journey. These references, in the dialogue between two characters, felt inorganic and just flat out odd. The plot is perfectly fine; it’s just this dull dialogue that causes the issue to fall.
Art:
The art is, unfortunately, a mixed bag this time around, but the good parts do go above and beyond. The illustrations of Aco are fantastic, especially in designing Tezcatlipoca’s forces. They had the look of natives but mixed with technology reminiscent of New Genesis. Add that along to the overall look of the book; it could be hung up on a wall.
Unfortunately, there are downsides to this art as well. Just like the previous issue, the layouts hold the story back. While the dialogue has its problems, the layout furthers the confusion with strange looks. I had to take a few minutes to figure out where the two-page spreads began and ended due to this. Art is supposed to help enhance a comic reading experience, but sadly, this does the opposite.
Conclusion:
This was a rough read to get through. There are pieces to a good story arc here. The stiff dialogue and strange layouts sadly hold the entire thing back. While I hope these will smooth out in time, I can’t recommend this book.
While the newest Superman adventure is intriguing, it’s lacking something else.
There is a threat brewing on the streets of Metropolis. While Superman is distracted by the significant incidents that plague the City, a group of street-level criminals unites to work under his nose. This Invisible Mafia begins setting fires to distract the Man of Steel and goes as far as to get blame pushed on him. Unfortunately for them, the truth comes out, and Superman begins to investigate. With the eyes of Superman heading towards them, the leader of the Mafia, Mr. Strong, punishes the fire-starter. He has his metahuman crony, Red Cloud, murder the rogue mafia member in front of the others to set an example. How far will this group go to hide from the Man of Steel?
**Some Spoilers Below**
Story:
After the body of the murdered Invisible Mafia member is dropped in midtown, reporter Melody Goode prepares a story that would blame Superman. Perry White, the determined editor for the Daily Planet, knows the story is false and has Clark investigate. Clark learns that the gangster was a member of this Mafia and agrees to follow the trail further. Meanwhile, Mr. Strong speaks with his inside reporter at the Daily Planet about taking down Superman. Melody believes she has a plan for that and has a request: she needs Kryptonite.
This investigation is pretty intriguing. Seeing Clark go out of his element to learn about the Mafia has its good points. We get to see Superman be a reporter, which to be honest, doesn’t happen as often as one would think. It’s a nice grounded part of the narrative that I appreciate.
That being said, that’s all it has storywise. This is supposed to be the more action-packed of the two Superman titles, and there is none in this issue. We get the investigation, but it needs more than that. The closest thing to action we get is Superman flying into the asteroid belt to let off some steam by punching them. Usually, the more grounded stories are left to the Superman series, but there are plenty of times Action Comics merged action with grounded moments. Comics don’t need to be full of action, but if this arc doesn’t pick up, more people might end up skipping it.
Art:
While I could go on and on about the story, I should mention the phenomenal art. There is something different about Patrick Gleason’s art this time around, but it’s still excellent. At first, it seemed as if Gleason was trying to go for a more subtle approach for this story. The style certainly captures the world of Superman, as it has in the past, and can still be considered more grounded. It becomes clear that Alejandro Sanchez’ colors are the factor responsible. His subtle shades keep the world real enough to be intriguing. All the factors considered, this team knocks it right out of the park.
Conclusion:
This opening arc to the Bendis-era of Action Comics needs more than what it is putting out. While the art and investigation hook the reader, it doesn’t do enough to keep them. The coming issues need more than just Superman following clues, but with the cliffhanger at the end, I feel we might just get that.
COLD SPOTS #1 from Image Comics hits your local comic book store as Cullen Bunn and Mark Torres open this eerie, bitter, tale with something supernatural and otherworldly surrounding the main character Dan Kerr and the individuals he’s tasked with finding, but there appears to be more than meets the eye in this dark and cold mystery.
COLD SPOTS #1 WRITTEN BY: Cullen Bunn ART BY: Mark Torres LETTERS: Simon Bowland
COLD SPOTS #1 SPOILERS AHEAD!
Summary
The story begins with Mr. Kerr driving to a meeting to meet Mr. Warren about a job. Readers find out that Mr. Kerr hasn’t seen Mr. Warren for over eight years. It turns out, Kerr was hired to find two missing people; Alyssa and her daughter Grace. After searching Grace’s room, the Butler finally caved and gave Mr. Kerr a hint as to where he thinks the ladies may have run off too: Ferry Landing.
Once Kerr arrives in town, he begins to ask questions that lead him to a motel for the night. After realizing that there is something odd about the cold weather in the area, Mr. Kerr pops back in the motel to find the store clerk frozen and broken in two.
The Goods
Cullen Bunn and Mark Torres are fantastic at showing readers the tension between Mr. Warren and Mr. Kerr. From the time Mr. Kerr drives to the mansion and even throughout the meeting, Bunn and Torres depict hate, hostility, and regret between these two characters through a mix of art, conversation, and situational writing.
Readers see the fear that Bunn was able to portray with simple discourse and well-placed panel layouts. For example, the Butler’s reaction to the dead hamsters and realizing his mistakes by not mentioning Alyssa’s online friends was worked in nicely by Bunn with little dialogue and designed so clearly. Bunn knows how to say just enough to leave fans curious while Torres helps add that extra layer of fear to set the mood and scene perfectly.
Now, my favorite part was the ending of the issue. It’s implied that these “specters” possess the ability to freeze people. Somehow the cold is so overwhelming that the store clerk turned to ice and broke. I want to see more of this! Are these ghosts the individuals from their past or is this some demonic spirit that takes the form of their lost loved ones? Also, does Alyssa or even Grace somehow control these specters? These are just a few questions that I left the issue with and I can’t wait to see where Bunn and Torres go from here.
The Art
The style that Torres uses sets the mood of the book immediately. The colors are dark, and the supernatural beings are drawn in such a frightening way. Simon Bowland’s letters are placed perfectly, his pacing and rhythm are spot on, and he never draws attention away from the art or story. The story’s progression is easy to follow, and I love quick and easy reads.
However, I enjoy more crispy and vivid art. That said, Torres’ art isn’t as detailed and dynamic as I would like but the art doesn’t take me out of the book. Again, it sets the mood, but I feel like it’s missing something. I enjoy seeing discernible facial expressions and details of characters, especially when they are front and center on the page.
Torres puts too many dark shadows around the characters faces, which took so much precision away from the issue. I understand the style choice, and I agree that the shadows helped add the eerie feeling that I loved, but I wish a happy medium could be found between the mood and the detail.
Should you buy this issue?
Bunn and Torres do a phenomenal job putting readers into a dark, ominous, and creepy environment from the start. Bunn doesn’t clue the reader into much in the beginning, BUT he implies ideas and situations that are going on while Torres sets the tone beautifully. If you like bone-chilling tales, this is for you. Get COLD SPOTS #1!
Should you add this to your pull list?
Definitely! If you like suspenseful, spine-chilling tales, Bunn’s COLD SPOT #1 is for you. By the end of the issue, readers are led to believe something unexplainable and supernatural is happening, AND it appears to be connected to Alyssa and Grace.
What did you guys think of COLD SPOTS #1? Comment below or hit me up on Twitter @dispatchdcu. If you would like to read more of my reviews, click HERE!
Cinemax released the first teaser trailer for Warrior, the series based on an original idea by Bruce Lee. There’s not much to the tease but a good kung fu series is a welcomed sight to the crowded landscape of television.
“WARRIOR 101”: Andrew Koji (Credit: Graham Bartholomew)
The 10 episode series stars Andrew Koji, Olivia Cheng, Jason Tobin, Dianne Doan, Kieran Bew, Dean S. Jagger, Joanna Vanderham, Tom Weston-Jones, Hoon Lee, Joe Taslim, Langley Kirkwood, Christian McKay, Perry Yung, Arthur Falko, Rich Ting, and Dustin Nguyen.
About Warrior: Inspired by an idea from martial-arts legend Bruce Lee, this gritty, action-packed crime drama is set during the brutal Tong Wars of San Francisco’s Chinatown in the second half of the 19th century. Filming in Cape Town, South Africa, it follows a martial arts prodigy who immigrates from China to San Francisco under mysterious circumstances and becomes a hatchet man for one of Chinatown’s most powerful organized crime families.
Award-winning sound designer Jacob Ribicoff loves to knead sound like bread, and he’s baked delicious sonic-loafs for films that include The Vietnam War, Fahrenheit 451 (2018), and The First Purge.
We started with The First Purge. “It was an awesome experience. One of the things I loved about working on that, aside from the action and jump scares, because, what sound designer doesn’t want to sink his teeth into that? But one of the things I loved about this film was that director Gerard McMurray, he really wanted the sound to sing. He wanted the film to sound vibrant and visceral.”
How does the process of making sound vibrant or muted begin for Jacob? “Every movie has a personality. So, like an actor, I think to myself ‘what’s my motivation?’”
“You could not have two diametrically
opposed kind of philosophies …”
A big part of any motivation in a film comes from its director and as we all know “Directors have wildly different approaches.”
Jacob’s worked with a lot of great ones over the years “Two films I worked on around the same time were The Darjeeling Limited from Wes Anderson and The Wrestler with Daren Aronofsky. You could not have two diametrically opposed kind of philosophies … You see a Wes Anderson movie, and it’s visually lush and amazingly composed, and the colors are vibrant. I had the intuitive impulse to create a reflection of that, equally vibrant. But Wes didn’t want that at all. He wanted a lo-fi approach. He wanted the sound to be a foil and not compete with the film. With Darren, it was the opposite. ‘I want this to be realism.’ Hyper-realism.”
“But when it came time to actually watch
the movie with those sounds in it things changed.”
Jacob discusses another nuanced type of director “… on Me, Earl, and the Dying Girl, that was a movie where we sat down to spot the movie. The director [Alfonso Gomez-Rejon] had all these ideas about the sound. I executed the ideas. But when it came time to actually watch the movie with those sounds in it things changed. They wanted more sparse-ness, but they needed to hear it first with sort of ‘extra sounds’ to really understand what they wanted. That happens a lot too.”
Jacob worked on the remarkable documentary series from 2017 The Vietnam War. So, what’s the connective tissue between all these different projects? “It’s about storytelling and appreciating … the aesthetic of how the story is being told.” He continues the actor analogy “… like an actor, I don’t want to be pigeonholed into one kind of thing. I love doing movies like The First Purge but also quieter films.
“It’s tactile.”
Passion rises “I love working with sound. It’s almost like sinking your hand into dough while making bread. It’s tactile. And it’s stimulating and challenging to work with directors who want to sink deep into that.”
As an example of how deep the filmmaking process can go “In Manchester by the Sea, there was a moment where a ping-pong ball is being hit. I listened to five different recordings of a ping-pong ball, and there was one that I said ‘that’s the essence of a ping-pong ball. That’s the one.’ I showed it to [director] Kenneth Lonergan, and he said ‘no, that’s not a ping-pong ball.’ So, I let him listen to the other recordings, and there was one that made him say ‘that’s it.’ So, I say it’s so important to find out what kind of story the director is telling.”
Readers, if you’re wondering “There is no right or wrong.” Or there is right and wrong at the same time.
“… and it gave me nightmares.”
Jacob talks about an early influence “Kubrick was a huge influence for me as a kid. My father was a distant relative of Kubrick and actually babysat him as a kid.”
Side Note: A cartoon about babysitters being forced to perform for a baby Stanley Kubrick sounds AMAZING.
Jacob continues “Every time a new Kubrick movie would come out we’d rush out to see it. Except for Clockwork Orange, I was a little too young for that. They took me to see 2001 when I was maybe five, and it gave me nightmares.”
“He has a way to make a sound soft
and powerful at the same time.”
The sound design industry is rich with talented people like Jacob. Who’s work does he admire? “I really like Craig Henighan, he works with Darren Aronofsky. I saw Mother! for example, a difficult movie to watch, but sonically it’s amazing. He does the sound for Stranger Things. He has a way to make a sound soft and powerful at the same time.”
So, what’s coming next from Jacob? “Wildlife, Paul Dano the director, Carey Mulligan, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Ed Oxenbould. And then, Private Life with Tamara Jenkins.”
Check out The First Purge and The Vietnam War now.
Thanks to Jacob Ribicoff and Impact24 PR for making this interview possible.
