The Digital Effects of ‘Iron Man 3’

The Digital Effects of ‘Iron Man 3’
Paul Hellard - CGSociety

“These are always incredibly challenging shows to work on,” says Overall VFX Supervisor for the production Chris Townsend from Los Angeles. “Marvel is famous for chasing the very best movie it can right up to the last minute. So, this is one of the hardest shows I’ve ever done, because of that. The crews had a very compressed schedule, a huge amount of work and this is very complex stuff. We had over 40 suits to build. All digital characters within all digital environments.”

In amongst it all, shooting was delayed when Robert Downey Jnr (RDJ) broke his leg during a shoot day and that…

Read The Rest

‘Star Trek Into Darkness’ Easter Eggs

‘Star Trek Into Darkness’ Easter Eggs
Matt Wright - TrekMovie.com

Of course Star Trek Into Darkness includes some big homages and reverences to Star Trek history including Khan, Section 31 and beyond which are key parts of the film. But there are also some more subtle ‘easter egg’ references to Star Trek history and beyond included in the film. Some of which you may have already spoted and maybe some you didn’t.

I actually got most of these. The interesting one to me is Praxis. The first thing I thought to myself when I saw the Klingon home world — no, LITERALLY the very first thing I thought — was, “what the heck, why is Praxis already blown up? Did…

Read The Rest

Joss Whedon Talks Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch (Video)

Joss Whedon Talks Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch (Video)

If you’re like me you may be wondering who on earth these crazy new characters that are supposed to be in The Avengers 2 are. Of course, I’m the guy who didn’t know who Iron Man was, or what The Avengers were, and I barely knew who Captain America was before all these movies started coming out. So maybe all you comic book nerds are sitting there staring blankly at this text I have written right now saying, “Why do I read this guy’s stuff, he’s a neophyte, a complete and utter newb. Well, I admit my knowlege of comic books is very limited so I am discovering these characters from a fresh…

Read The Rest

‘Return of the Jedi’ Ruined ‘Star Wars’

‘Return of the Jedi’ Ruined ‘Star Wars’
Drew Taylor - The Playlist

Lucas found that the original title of the third film, ‘Revenge of the Jedi,’ was too harsh, so he softened that as well. It was ‘Return of the Jedi’ now. Everything in the “Star Wars” universe became cuter, cuddlier, and less dangerous, with the contemplative philosophical underpinnings of the previous film replaced with flimsy metaphysical hooey. Even the film’s climax faltered. The original film had one large-scale space battle that involved all the principle characters; it was cleanly told and easy to follow. For the sequel, things were stripped away even further – instead of a space…

Read The Rest

The Original ‘Star Wars’ Prequel Plans

The Original ‘Star Wars’ Prequel Plans
Hugh Armitage - Digital Spy

“On his missions through the galaxies, Anakin has been going off doing his Jedi thing and a lot of Jedi have been getting killed - and it’s because they turn their back on him and he cuts them down.

“The president is turning into an Emperor and Luke’s mother suspects that something has happened to her husband. She is pregnant. Anakin gets worse and worse, and finally Ben has to fight him and he throws him down into a volcano and Vader is all beat up.

Hit up the link for more.

This sounds SOOOO much better than what we got. What happened? Where did it all go wrong? Why did Lucas…

Read The Rest

‘Avengers 2’ Can’t Name Scarlet Witch or Quicksilver

‘Avengers 2’ Can’t Name Scarlet Witch or Quicksilver
Hugh Armitage - Digital Spy

Avengers 2 will not be able to use Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver’s code names, it has been claimed.

Only 20th Century Fox, which controls the X-Men rights, will be able to use the characters’ superhero titles, while Marvel can use the names Wanda and Pietro, according to The Hollywood Reporter‘s Borys Kit.

...

Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, the children of Magneto, first debuted in X-Men but have been important members of the Avengers over the years.

...

It has also been claimed that Avengers 2 will not be able to refer to the twins as mutants.

Sigh. Can’t we all just…

Read The Rest

Man Faces Charges for Throwing Theater Patron’s Phone

Man Faces Charges for Throwing Theater Patron’s Phone
Kevin Williamson - National Review Online

The lady seated to my immediate right (very close quarters on bench seating) was fairly insistent about using her phone. I asked her to turn it off. She answered: “So don’t look.” I asked her whether I had missed something during the very pointed announcements to please turn off your phones, perhaps a special exemption granted for her. She suggested that I should mind my own business.

So I minded my own business by utilizing my famously feline agility to deftly snatch the phone out of her hand and toss it across the room, where it would do no more damage. She slapped me and stormed away…

Read The Rest

Apple Removing Download Option for Trailers

Apple Removing Download Option for Trailers
Juli Clover - MacRumors

It appears that Apple has begun quietly phasing out its trailer download options from thetrailers.apple.com website, effectively eliminating 1080p trailer availability.

Previously, the site gave users the ability to stream trailers in 480p or 720p, along with providing download options for 480p, 720p, and 1080p. Trailers uploaded to the site after an approximate date of May 22 no longer have any download options and can only be streamed in-browser at 480p or 720p.

I have confirmed this as well. It is slightly annoying because I used to download the big 1080p trailers that I especially…

Read The Rest

Sony To Sell Spider-Man Rights To Marvel?

Sony To Sell Spider-Man Rights To Marvel?
Joshua Nealey - Hypable

Spider-Man returning to the Marvel universe has been a hot topic for many years, and now reports are in that he may be headed back soon if Sony’s financial troubles aren’t alleviated.

Since Marvel’s The Avengers crushed box office records last year, the discussion concerning Spider-Man’s character rights has been brought back into the mix. For those who don’t know, the Spider-Man character is owned by Sony, and while we saw the reboot, The Amazing Spider-Man, become successful back in July, Sony’s financial troubles continue to haunt them.

Comic Book Therapy recently reported that Sony…

Read The Rest

Box Office Report for May 27 - They’re Fast and I’m Furious

Box Office Report for May 27 - They’re Fast and I’m Furious

Hey guys, I hope you’re having a great   Day. Personally, I’m getting a pretty late start here and I’m not to worried about that.

Last weekend apparently the box office got a little Fast and Furious with tickets sales… Here’s what we’ve got.

#1 - Fast and Furious 6

Budget: $160 Million
Totals: $96.7 Million Domestic Weekend Gross / $197 Million Current Foreign Total / $317 Million Worldwide Total
Week Number: 1

There must be something about this franchise that I’m just not getting. I don’t understand how something that looks like a pile of garbage can make this much money. And HOW…

Read The Rest