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'The Eagle' Review: Aims High, Soars Low

By John Gholson (Subscribe to John Gholson's posts), Posted Feb 11th 2011 2:45PM
Filed under: Reviews, Cinematical

In Kevin MacDonald's sword-and-sandal drama, 'The Eagle,' Channing Tatum (as centurion Marcus Aquila) trudges through the mud from the edges of the Roman Empire into the land that will one day be Great Britain. It's a grueling journey, and while the film isn't quite as difficult to finish as Marcus's quest to retrieve his father's 9th Legion golden eagle standard, it's not a cakewalk either.

There's not a sharp clarity of purpose in 'The Eagle.' For a bit, 'The Eagle' looks like a rousing B-movie, one with Tatum miscast, but game, in a role that might stretch his resume beyond that of a dancing G.I. Joe. He speaks with the same affected, mushy accent that Hollywood actors use in period pieces when they can't do British (think Brad Pitt in 'Troy'), but the man is doing his damnedest to be a convincing period hero here. He's working to the best of his own abilities in a movie that consistently lets him (and the audience) down.
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The Week In Geek: 'Thor' Versus 'Captain America'

By John Gholson (Subscribe to John Gholson's posts), Posted Feb 8th 2011 9:00PM
Filed under: Summer Movies, Columns, Sci-Fi, Cinematical

[The Week in Geek is a weekly Tuesday column that plunges headfirst into a deep pool of genre geekiness without ever coming up for air.]

Its a long-standing Marvel tradition that when two superheroes meet up, they've gotta fight. Usually it's due to some kind of misunderstanding, then the two make peace and go on their merry way as teammates against whatever looming threat has brought them to the same place at the same time. For Captain America and Thor, it's no different, and the two heroes found themselves pitted against each other in last weekend's Super Bowl.

This week, in a fight of trailer against trailer, 'Captain America: The First Avenger' versus 'Thor,' they're going to duke it out, big Jack Kirby splash page style. The two ads will compete in the following categories for the Best Marvel Trailer at the Superbowl: Origin Clarity, Villain Reveal, Sex Appeal, Money Shots, and Iconography. Who will win? Who will fall?

Let's get ready to rumble ...
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The Week In Geek: Henry Cavill and the Many Voices of Superman

By John Gholson (Subscribe to John Gholson's posts), Posted Feb 1st 2011 10:15PM
Filed under: Columns, Sci-Fi, Cinematical

[The Week in Geek is a weekly Tuesday column that plunges headfirst into a deep pool of genre geekiness without ever coming up for air.]

And suddenly, just like that, everyone knows the name Henry Cavill. That's what happens when you get cast as Superman in a major motion picture (Zack Snyder's 'The Man of Steel'). Even Brandon Routh, who never really took advantage of his 'Superman Returns' fame, remains well-known, simply because he played Superman once. Christopher Reeve was linked to the superhero to his dying day, with headlines of his untimely demise stumbling over themselves to see who could lead with the best Superman reference.

I grew up with the Christopher Reeve Superman, but, in equal measure, I grew up with the Danny Dark Superman. Dark was the actor who voiced Superman for over thirteen year's worth of Hanna-Barbera cartoons, including all of the various incarnations of the 'Super Friends.' In the movies, Reeve seemed like a sensitive, funny Superman, but Dark's Superman spoke with authority and strength. His was the Superman voice I imagined when I pored over a DC comic book as a kid. As a matter of fact, Superman still sounds like Danny Dark to me, but he's just one of many who voiced the iconic role.
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The Week In Geek: Kevin Smith Is Not Your Friend

By John Gholson (Subscribe to John Gholson's posts), Posted Jan 25th 2011 7:00PM
Filed under: Hot Topic, Columns, Cinematical


[The Week in Geek is a weekly Tuesday column that plunges headfirst into a deep pool of genre geekiness without ever coming up for air.]

Kevin Smith has worked hard over the years to establish himself as our funny buddy who happened to get lucky one day in 1994. It's not the whole truth, but it's his persona, and the payoff is that listening to a Kevin Smith DVD commentary track is like hearing a recording of some rowdy, funny friends, goofing on their own talents and shortcomings. He gets up close and personal with fans every week through his podcast, confiding to thousands about the details of his own sex life and drug use, and routinely sells out auditoriums for his loyal audience to hear what his family's been up to lately. This week, he's even inviting a handful of national critics and bloggers into his home for a special screening of 'Red State.'

Despite all of this, Kevin Smith is not your friend.

I think it's especially important to remember as many people went completely bananas over Smith's recent Sundance shenanigans. By saying he wasn't going to let any press see 'Red State' in advance of its official release (other than the ones he handpicked), his screening ended up being full of eager press, essentially taking him up on a dare. He turned the non-commercial 'Red State' into the fest's must-have hot-ticket auction item (remember, this is a bloodbath about religious zealots starring Michael Parks -- not exactly 'Little Miss Sunshine'), only to reveal he never had any intent of selling it off in the first place. Instead, he's going to distribute it himself, state-to-state, and count on his fans to come out and pay a premium to see Smith introduce his latest movie.
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The Week In Geek: Do Rumors of 'Batman: Year One' Inspire Origin Fatigue?

By John Gholson (Subscribe to John Gholson's posts), Posted Jan 18th 2011 9:00PM
Filed under: Columns, Sci-Fi, Cinematical
[The Week in Geek is a weekly Tuesday column that plunges headfirst into a deep pool of genre geekiness without ever coming up for air.]

There was a bit of confusion yesterday morning, spawned by a recent Darren Aronofsky interview in which the 'Black Swan' director answered a question about comic book side projects. Aronofsky seemed to be answering "yes" to a question about his involvement with a new Batman project, when in fact he was talking about a completely different project and just didn't make himself quite clear. Many ran with the director's response, as a sure sign he was doing the first post-Christopher Nolan 'Batman' movie, specifically 'Batman: Year One.'

I love Darren Aronofsky, and even I balked at the 'Batman: Year One' news. Would I like to see him do a Batman film? Sure, it's exciting to imagine what he'd do with the property. Would I like to see Batman's origin...again? Not really, no. The prospect of once again seeing Bruce Wayne go through all the tropes of becoming Batman sounds extremely tired to me right now. Yeah, yeah, parents, alley, slow-motion pearls, training, batcaves, zzzzzz. We've seen this song and dance before. It's probably not the popular opinion, but I'm relieved to hear that it's not happening.
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The Week In Geek: Six Things You Might Not Know About 'The Green Hornet'

By John Gholson (Subscribe to John Gholson's posts), Posted Jan 11th 2011 12:00PM
Filed under: Hot Topic, Columns, Sci-Fi, Cinematical


[The Week in Geek is a weekly Tuesday column that plunges headfirst into a deep pool of genre geekiness without ever coming up for air.]

I went into Michel Gondry's 'The Green Hornet' knowing next to nothing about the Green Hornet. I have vague memories of the masked vigilante guest-starring on the 1960's 'Batman' TV show, and I've been semi-aware that he's popped up in comic books from time to time over the years. I know he has a really cool sidekick (Kato, played in the new film by Jay Chou), but beyond that? Nothing.

Because of my general lack of knowledge, I can't really say if Seth Rogen, as the co-screenwriter, producer, and title star of 'The Green Hornet' was faithful to the original 1936 radio material, but the movie sure was a blast to watch. 'The Green Hornet' has a loose, anything-goes energy that recalls the action-comedies that seemed to arrive like clockwork every summer during the 1990s. Will the die-hard fans appreciate it? I'm not sure. Better question: Are there any such thing as die-hard Green Hornet fans?

The first thing I did after seeing the movie was roll up my sleeves and dig deep into the internet to find out a little bit more about the mythos of The Green Hornet...
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The Week In Geek: 2011 Sci-Fi Movies Flying Under the Radar

By John Gholson (Subscribe to John Gholson's posts), Posted Jan 4th 2011 10:00PM
Filed under: Columns, Sci-Fi, Cinematical


[The Week in Geek is a weekly Tuesday column that plunges headfirst into a deep pool of genre geekiness without ever coming up for air.]

2011 will feel like Christmas all year for genre fans. Before the year is through, we'll be treated to 'Green Lantern,' 'Thor,' 'Captain America,' 'X-Men: First Class,' and 'Ghost Rider 2.' And that's just the comic book stuff -- there's already a rolling boil of hype for 'Cowboys and Aliens,' 'Battle: Los Angeles,' and 'Sucker Punch' to name a few. Are there any surprises left in 2011? I certainly hope so, and here are seven films that seem to be flying under everyones' radars...at least right now.
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