‘Super Mario Bros.’ Has Very Little Movie Potential

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November 14, 2017

Recently, it was announced that Nintendo might be teaming up with Illumination Entertainment, the studio behind Minions, to create an animated Super Mario Bros. movie. As a lifelong Nintendo fan, I don’t see the point of this.

Now, from a business perspective, I totally get it. A Super Mario Bros. animated film has potential to make insane amount of money at the box office. However, as a fan, it annoys me that Nintendo has such a rich library of characters and neglects to use them for a film.

There are dozens of franchises that have better movie potential than Mario. Zelda, Metroid, Star Fox, Fire Emblem, and Xenoblade are all choices that have infinitely more to pull from. Super Mario Bros. is an incredible video game franchise, but that’s because it has continually stepped up its game.

Super Mario Odyssey is so well renowned because of its innovation within the series, along with its ability to let the player capture tons of new enemies. Additionally, its controls are incredibly fluid, making for an overall great experience. Narrative-wise, it is nothing special, and this is the fundamental problem when floating the idea of a Super Mario Bros. movie.

For a film to work, the characters and plot must be engaging, and whether fans like to admit it or not, that’s exactly where this franchise lacks. It’s constantly the damsel in distress story; Mario has to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser. It works in the games because it takes a backseat to the fun gameplay. In a movie, the story and characters must be a point of emphasis. Given that this is where Mario is oftentimes unsuccessful, it makes me nervous that this is the film they’re working on first.

Video game movies already have a bad track record, and this news leads me to believe that the Super Mario Bros. movie will do nothing to break the trend.

Do you think this is a good idea, or would you rather see Nintendo make movies based off their other franchises? Comment below, let us know.

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See Jon Bernthal Navigate a Pulp Noir Landscape in This SWEET VIRGINIA Trailer

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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November 14, 2017

Jon Bernthal is quickly ascending the mountain of actors who immediately make everything better merely by their presence. Any time he appears, in whatever capacity, Bernthal lights up the screen with a sinister intensity that’s hard to imitate. He’s perfect for The Punisher, and he looks absolutely perfect in this Sweet Virginia trailer.

Sweet Virginia looks like a juicy, blood-soaked bit of pulpy noir storytelling, full of shadowy figures with even more shadowy motivations, gunplay, and gritty dialogue. Check out the trailer:

A former rodeo star, with a small time life, unknowingly starts a rapport with a young man who is responsible for the violence that has suddenly gripped his small town. Every character from his loved ones to his business patrons, plays a part in the unravelling of this community. Our aged hero must face his relationships of past and present to come up against this unpredictable predator.

Aside from Bernthal and Abbott, whose battle of wits and wills should be a sight to see for genre fans, Imogen Poots and the GREAT Rosemarie DeWitt also star in Sweet Virginia. It will hit VOD on November 17, just in time for you to roll right from The Punisher into this terrific-looking slice of pulp fiction.

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‘Super Mario’ Might Be Coming Back To The Big Screen

By

Aric Sweeny

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November 14, 2017

A new, animated Super Mario Bros. movie is in the works, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Illumation Entertainment, the studio behind Minions, is reportedly in talks to create the new movie. Shigeru Miyamoto, who created the franchise, would join the motion picture as a Producer.

“Illumination Entertainment, which makes animated films for Comcast Corp.’s Universal Pictures, is close to an agreement with Nintendo Co. to make an animated “Super Mario Bros.” movie based on the 32-year-old videogame series about a pair of sibling plumbers who fight evil turtles and mushrooms in a fantasy kingdom, said people with knowledge of the discussions.”

Though Illumation often deals with criticism because of their Minions franchise, they know exactly what they are doing. The film made over a billion dollars at the box office, and an animated film about the most popular video game character ever has serious potential.

How do you feel about a new Super Mario movie? Sound off in the comments below.

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Justice League Post Credits Scene Hits The Internet With An Infinite Mass Punch Of Info

By

Ruben Diaz

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November 14, 2017

Late in the evening, a new moment from the upcoming Justice League movie found it’s way onto the Internet. The news comes from Comic Book Resources and lit up the web for hours. And even as the leaked footage vanishes from the Internet there’s a whole lot to talk about. News about the post-credits scene began buzzing when Jason Mamoa called it “fantastic.” Now, early reviews of the film are coming in and the post-credits truth is out!

Geeks everywhere woke up to the awesome news and quickly scrambled to do one of two things:

A) Runaway! Those who like to stay spoiler-free are happy with knowing that there’s a second post-credits scene to the much-anticipated superhero team movie.

B) To the Google! The other half raced to their browsers and quickly hunted the scene down.

WB is busy pulling the leaked footage off of the Internet. But we got a glimpse. And for this who are curious, read ahead through some of the finer points of the trailer. So, just to be absolutely clear here:

SPOILERS ABOUT JUSTICE LEAGUE ARE AHEAD!

• It begins with a head-fake in Arkham revealing that Luthor is no longer imprisoned there.
• Bald Jesse Eisenberg appears as Luthor.
• Luthor is talking to none other than Joe Manganiello’s Deathstroke!
• The pair are talking about forming a league of their own.

Holy shyte! It’s confirmation that the Injustice League will be coming to the DCEU!

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS
Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists newfound ally Diana Prince to face an even more significant threat. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to recruit a team to stand against this newly awakened enemy. Despite the formation of an unprecedented league of heroes — Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and the Flash — it may be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.

Justice League Premieres Nov. 17 (TRAILER) and is Directed by Zack Snyder with Josh Whedon. The film stars Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Henry Cavill, Barry Miller, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Amy Adams, Jeremy Irons, JK Simmons, Connie Nielsen, and Ciaran Hinds.

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Danny McBride Gives Another Weird Update on HALLOWEEN Sequel

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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November 14, 2017

Ever since Danny McBride and David Gordon Green announced they were doing a new Halloween sequel, which would pick up apparently where the first one left off, the comedy duo have been giving strange, cryptic details about this new project.

Originally, the first two films were going to stay in McBride’s universe, which meant the underrated hospital-set follow up would be in this new canon. Then all sequels were going to be ignored. Then… John Carpenter himself claimed this new Halloween sequel would be set in an alternate reality… what?

Allow Danny BcBride to further confuse you, courtesy of Yahoo! Entertainment, saying “We’re kind of ignoring all the films past the first one. It picks up after the first one,” he adds, “but it’s sort of an alternate reality. It’s as if the first Halloween ended in a slightly different way.”

It’s a weird bit of new information that muddies up the waters even more. McBride is being intentionally dodgy about the questions, which is kind of fun, but his explanations just make fans wonder what the hell is going on. And, speaking of those fans, McBride and Green realize this fanbase won’t suffer any bullshit:

“I just hope that we don’t f*** it up and piss people off. This is such a diehard fan base. You don’t want horror fans being your enemies because they show up at your house with masks on… We are diehard fans of Halloween. We’re watching all the sequels and where things have taken left turns here and there that maybe bites for fans, and at least trying to deliver what we would have wanted to see. Hopefully that will line up with most fans.”

Jamie Lee Curtis is coming back to play Laurie Strode, this we do know. Aside from that bit of news, it’s anyone’s guess what is going to go down here. I have faith, however, that McBride and Green will do this thing right.

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‘Wonder Woman 2’ Release Date Moves Up 6 Weeks

By

Kieran McLean

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November 13, 2017

It looks like fans won’t need to wait quite as long for Wonder Woman 2. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman sequel has been moved up to Nov. 1, 2019, from its initial date of Dec. 13, 2019.

More – ‘Wonder Woman’ Is Now The Highest Grossing Superhero Origin Story

The shift in release date isn’t overly surprising when you note that Lucasfilm moved Star Wars: Episode IX to Dec. 20, 2019. With its new release date, Wonder Woman 2 doesn’t need to worry about competing with the biggest franchise on Earth.

Released earlier this year, Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman broke multiple box-office records to become the highest grossing superhero origin story of all-time. Wonder Woman is currently the highest-rated film in the DC Extended Universe and the studio clearly wants to get started on a sequel.

Earlier this week it was rumoured that Gal Gadot was refusing to return for the Wonder Woman sequel unless Brett Ratner is removed from the project. Ratner is currently facing multiple accusations of harassment and Gadot doesn’t want anything to do with him or his company.

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‘Lord of the Rings’ TV Prequel Series Picked up by Amazon

By

Eric Morales

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November 13, 2017

Amazon announced Monday afternoon that it has acquired the global television rights to The Lord of the Rings franchise.

Based on the seminal fantasy novels by J.R.R. Tolkein, this multi-season commitment will be an Amazon Prime Original and produced by Amazon Studios. The Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins, and New Line Cinema will also be involved in the production.

“The Lord of the Rings is a cultural phenomenon that has captured the imagination of generations of fans through literature and the big screen. We are honored to be working with the Tolkien Estate and Trust, HarperCollins and New Line on this exciting collaboration for television and are thrilled to be taking The Lord of the Rings fans on a new epic journey in Middle Earth.” – Sharon Tal Yguado, Head of Scripted Series, Amazon Studios.

The series will explore new storylines that serve as prequels to The Fellowship of the Ring. Their deal also includes potential spin-off series.

Amazon Prime heads to Middle Earth. https://t.co/QowUmf8t3S pic.twitter.com/YVciEX3u2t

— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) November 13, 2017

The Lord of the Rings franchise is most known for the titular trilogy, as well as the prequel The Hobbit. Tolkein did explore the time before The Fellowship of the Ring in unfinished writings that were later compiled by his son, including The Silmarillion and The Children of Húrin. Whether Amazon will adapt these works remains to be seen.

“We are delighted that Amazon, with its longstanding commitment to literature, is the home of the first-ever multi-season television series for The Lord of the Rings. Sharon and the team at Amazon Studios have exceptional ideas to bring to the screen previously unexplored stories based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s original writings.” – Matt Galsor, representative for the Tolkien Estate and Trust and HarperCollins

This news should not come as a surprise given the programming push Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has mandated. There have been quite a few change ups at the executive level over at Amazon Studios, as they continue to fight for their own Game of Thrones.

No release date has been announced as of writing.

What do you think of a Lord of the Rings prequel TV series? Let us know on Facebook, Twitter, or in the comments below!

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Don’t Hold Your Breath For That MAD MAX: FURY ROAD Sequel

By

Larry Taylor - Managing Editor

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November 13, 2017

Ever since May of 2015 (which seems like two decades ago), when Mad Max: Fury Road took the Movie Nerd Kingdom by storm, fans of George Miller’s triumphant return have been clamoring for a Mad Max: Fury Road sequel. Which makes complete sense.

Since 2015, rumors have bounced to and fro online, rumors of two sequels, and plot outlines, and the potential cast, but nothing has gotten beyond a single news cycle. If any franchise is both deserving of a follow up, and practically printing money at the mere mention of its existence, it would be the continuing adventures of Max and Furiosa.

Turns out, George Miller and Warner Bros. are in a bit of a legal battle, which is holding up this cash cow. Here’s a breakdown of the entire case courtesy of The Playlist:

“According to Kennedy Miller Mitchell, if the the final net cost of Fury Road didn’t exceed $157 million, they would receive a $7 million bonus. Even more, if Warner Bros. decided to co-finance the picture, Kennedy Miller Mitchell would be given the first opportunity to participate. However, Kennedy Miller Mitchell claims that Warner Bros. made decisions that caused Fury Road to go over budget, and even more, entered a co-financing deal with Brett Ratner’s RatPac Entertainmentwithout reaching out to Miller’s company first.”

Kind of awkward seeing Ratner’s name and production company in here. This is typical he-said, she-said business, but if I were a betting man I would imagine the studio interfered and delayed things etc. Because that’s what suits like to do, they like to meddle.

Sounds like a bit of a mess, but one that Miller and Warner Bros. (i.e., Warner Bros.) will come to their senses and work this out. But don’t mark anything down on your calendar when it comes to the Mad Max: Fury Road sequel.

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DC on CW Weekly Review: Daddy Deathstroke and Super Strippers

By

Jon Barr - TV Editor

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November 13, 2017

This series will be a brief, semi-comedic review of the CW superhero shows. You can check out last week’s review post here. The only shows discussed will be ‘Arrow’, ‘Flash’, and ‘Supergirl’. There WILL be some spoilers discussed, so only look at the reviews you’re up to date on!

BackNext

1. Arrow, “Deathstroke Returns” (Nov 9th)

Arrow continues to make the odd choice of keeping Stephen Amell from leading an episode. Oliver staying out of the hood makes sense, but the show seems to forget that he’s the star. “Deathstroke Returns” asks us to buy that Deathstroke is nothing but a misunderstood, Liam Neeson-style dad, and it doesn’t work. Deathstroke was an awesome villain, but a boring protagonist. The reveal of Vigilante’s identity is an interesting reveal, but purely focusing on the Black Canary romance aspect is boring.

SCORE: 6.5/10 Matchbox Flowers

WEEKLY WIN TALLY:

The Flash: 2.8 Weeks

Supergirl: 1.8 Weeks

Arrow: 0.3 Week

What show did you think won the week? Does Legends of Tomorrow take your vote? Do you think A.o.S. or Gotham outshines all the CW shows? Let us know in the comments below!

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AfterShock Comics is a Publisher You Should be Embracing

By

Michael Stagno

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November 13, 2017

Long story, short. Mike Marts, formerly an editor for 10 years each at both Marvel and DC, decided to branch out and start his own publishing company. Alongside fellow publisher Joe Pruett, they founded AfterShock Comics. The mentality is simple, there is no need to keep up with the ‘Big 2’ because staying ‘small’ allows for intuitive creator-owned comics to shine, similar to Image and other Indie publishers.

The publisher launched in April of 2015 and just signed a contract this year with Diamond Direct as part of an exclusive worldwide distribution deal thanks in part to two of its biggest titles, ‘Animosity’ and ‘American Monster’. AfterShock is unique in that it allows for so many different genres to be represented, outside of the superhero phenomenon, like sci-fi, horror and action-adventure titles. There is something for any kind of comic fan and reader.

Besides ‘Animosity’ and ‘American Monster’, some of our other favorite titles include: ‘World Reader’, ‘Rough Riders’, ‘Shipwreck’, ‘Backways’, ‘InSEXts’, ‘Second Sight’, ‘Alters’ and ‘Dreaming Eagles’.

Animosity: One day, the animals woke up and started talking, thinking and taking revenge. The story follows a dog and his girl as they try to flee NYC, bound for San Fran, in search of protection.

World Reader: Sarah is an astronaut traveling to various dead planets, talking to ghosts and trying to discover the secret as to what is killing the universe. She’s also hunted during her quest, by Death.

Rough Riders: Theodore Roosevelt guides his motley crew of soon-to-be American legends as they solve mysteries and fight life-threatening entities.

American Monster: A man with a horribly scarred face takes on a small-town, corrupt sheriff and a rural crew of racist arms dealers. He’s tabbed as a hero, but he really seeks to take the town over.

Shipwreck: Jonathan Shipwright is the sole survivor of an unusual shipwreck and doesn’t know where he is. Navigating an endless road, he pursues a saboteur who holds the key to his salvation … or doom.

Backways: There is a hidden nation of both magic and madness, that exists in all forgotten spaces, like your basement, attic, haunted houses, etc., and Anna Merrick is in search of someone she lost in the ‘Backways’.

InSEXts: A pair of vengeful Victorian vixens discover a horrifying power that transforms them into rich and strange creatures. Armed with their dark, they descend into the occult, with intentions of forging a life for themselves and the child of their love.

Second Sight: Ray Pilgrim, 20 years ago, became a celebrity when he discovered he had the ability to see through the eyes of psychotic killers terrorizing London. His world falls around him when he is accused of the same crimes and is hunted.

Alters: In a world where a war between heroes and villains is being fought, humanity is becoming the collateral damage in the equation. The ‘Alters’ are mutants and might ultimately be the end of our genetic road map.

Dreaming Eagles: This title tells the story, inspired by true events, of the first African-American fighter pilots in the U.S. Army Air Force in WWII, from their humble beginnings in Tuskegee, Ala., to the deadly skies above Hitler’s Germany.

Having already locked in such talents like the duo of Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner, Brian Azzarello, Jeff Loveness, Francesco Francavilla and Leila Leiz, just to name a few, the publisher will keep attracting both upcoming and established creators, as it continues to grow and, for the first time, in 2018, will participate in Free Comic Book Day.

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