With a title like “The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag”, you gotta figure that the story behind it has to be pretty groovy, right? Let’s hope so, because with a director like Alex Proyas calling the shots, this is yet another must-see film on my very short list of must-see sci-fi films. Yes, I’m even including the Nicolas Cage movie “Knowing” on that list, even though it looks like it’ll have nothing of the visual flair that I’ve come to associate with Proyas’ works. But anyways, back to “Jonathan Hoag”. So what’s the movie about?
Archive for August 20, 2008
Alex Proyas to Adapt Heinlein’s Jonathan Hoag
Firefly Season 1 Blu-Ray Specs
Joss Whedon’s fan favorite Firefly TV show never made it past its first season on FOX. Heck, it never really had much of a chance, what with FOX being, well, FOX. The show did prove to have enough fan momentum that it convinced the Powers That Be to greenlight a movie version, but the movie didn’t exactly do gangbuster business, which means a sequel is highly unlikely. Whedon himself has said as much just recently. But have no fear, if you loved the TV show, you’ll want to get the Blu-Ray version of the first and only season when it’s released on Blu Ray November 11, 2008.
Do You Still Believe? X-Files 3 May go Straight to DVD
Really? The Powers That Be are actually considering a third installment in the “X-Files” franchise, despite the beating the second film took at the box office? Apparently so. Or at least, according to some guy who knows some guy, who wrote in to Dread Central telling them about it. As DC states, I think this is just wishful thinking, especially considering how awful “X-Files 2: I Want to Believe” did. Seriously, really? A sequel to a sequel that no one wanted in the first place, and those who got it didn’t even liked it? Wow.
Voltron Movie Still in Limbo
Still holding your breath for a live-action Voltron movie? Well you’re going to have to keep waiting, because it doesn’t look like the movie is anywhere closer to becoming reality, what with news that New Regency has recently put the film, the full title of which is “Voltron: Defender of the Universe” into turnaround. Everyone involved still plans to get the movie made, but the budget isn’t there, and if anything, the budget may get slashed before a deal is agreed upon. That, and the Japanese right holders are being fidgety about letting a big Hollywood studio mess with their animal robots.
New The Eleventh Hour Promos
A lot of things about the new CBS sci-fi show The Eleventh Hour appeals to me. One is finally seeing the great actor Rufus Sewell finally play something other than a smarmy evil European for once; and the other is the idea of the gorgeous Marley Shelton playing an ass-kicking bodyguard to Sewell’s scientist character. That’s pretty new, you gotta admit, since usually it’s the other way around. I’m dying to see how the dynamics of that switcheroo works onscreen, if it does, that is. Anyways, new promos for the show have popped up online.
Joss Whedon: Serenity 2 is Very Unlikely
Diehard Joss Whedon fans (or Whedonites, I think is what they call themselves) want it to happen desperately, and even the cast thinks it would be just too cool if they could go back and do a sequel to the movie “Serenity” (the feature-length movie version of the cancelled Firefly TV show), but according to the franchise’s creator, writer, and do-it-all guy Joss Whedon — it ain’t gonna happen. Ever. Well, maybe not ever, but definitely it’s not going to happen anytime soon, because according to Whedon, no one is telling him they WANT the sequel. At least, no one with the money to bankroll it.
Supernatural Episode 4.01 Lazarus Rising Promos
You may or may not have heard by now, but Dean Winchester survives his recent trip to Hell, as seen in the final seconds of the third season’s cliffhanger episode. But how exactly did he return to the land of the living? Was it something Sam did? Maybe, maybe not. We’ll probably find out as the Supernatural Season 4 continues, and how Sam has changed as a result. In the meantime, here are the first promo images from the first episode of Season 4, titled “Lazarus Rising”.
New Fringe Promo Images, Posters
Here’s the deal about J.J. Abrams’ new TV show on FOX, Fringe: it will either blow up, or it will go gently into that good night after 10 episodes or so. I just don’t see this type of show, with the type of money FOX is probably going to be using to push it, falling somewhere in the middle, with the network being happy with that result. They’ll either want a breakthrough hit in the vein of NBC’s Heroes, or they’re going to shut it down. But that’s just my opinion, I could be wrong, and I usually am. In any case, here are new promo posters and images from Fringe to get you ready for the show’s premiere on August 25. Hey, that’s just around the corner!
Michael Shanks Keeping Busy Post-Stargate
Stargate: SG1 may have come to an end, in movie or TV form, but don’t worry for the cast, boys and girls. Everyone seems to have found something to do, or should, as you don’t star in a regular TV show for over 10 years and not have plenty of guest starring opportunities on other TV shows. TV just works that way. Once you’ve starred in a show, you’re offered jobs on other shows. Michael Shanks has taken up a number of offers, with a recurring role on the USA Network’s Burn Notice show, where he’ll be playing another burned spy who has to do the bidding of Carla, played by Battlestar Galactica’s Tricia Helfer, the same woman who burned the show’s lead, Michael Westen.
Brick Director Time Travels in Looper
I’ve never seen Rian Johnson’s teen high school noir “Brick”, but I sure have heard good to great things about it. People who have seen it seems to really love it, which means I gotta give it a shot sooner or later. Anyways, Rian Johnson’s next movie is more in line with us, a sci-fi time-travel movie in the vein of a Philip Dick short story. Or at least that’s how the writer-director is describing it.
New Star Trek 11 Character Posters
Look, kids, it’s our first look at Simon Pegg as Scotty from J.J. Abrams’ new Star Trek movie! Well not really. It’s just Simon Pegg looking like Simon Pegg, but with the Trek emblem and artwork around the image, he’s “officially” Scotty. Kinda. Anyways, if that’s enough to get your engines revving, then you’ll love these new Trek 11 character posters that Paramount has just released online to the masses. Yup, real Star Trek-y. If you like that sort of thing, I mean, what with the movie still a year away. I still think the Pike kid looks like a deranged, “serial killer next door” type with that pose…
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) Movie Review
There’s just something about “Star Wars” that brings out the geek in people. When I recently attended an advanced screening of “Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” I kept seeing a blue light flashing out of the corner of my eye. Turning to look, I was surprised to see the source – a $119 light saber (available from Toys R Us. It was so cool I had to check it out). But the biggest surprise was yet to come. The person wielding the “toy” was a man, probably in his mid-40s, dressed as Obi-Wan Kenobi. Ah, yes, I was with my people.
New Day the Earth Stood Still Remake Images
Two new images from Scott Derrickson’s remake of “The Day the Earth Stood Still” have arrived online. The most curious image is the one with stars Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connelly. What you have here is the incredibly expressive Connelly with the incredibly stilted Reeves. The difference, on the big screen, should be worth a nice laugh or two. And hey, maybe they won’t get as heavy handed with the whole “global warming is going to destroy us all!” message that we’ve been hearing rumors about. Probably not, though.
Flash Gordon Movie Gets Writers
Good news for those of you who still have a passion for all things Flash Gordon after the lackluster TV show by the Sci Fi Channel — Sony has hired two writers, Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless, to take a crack at the script. No stranger to fiction, the writing duo of Sazama and Sharpless are already in the process of writing vampire flick “Dracula Year Zero” for Universal and are also penning “300″ director Zack Snyder’s “Cobalt 60.” So yeah, these guys seem to know what they’re doing.
James Cameron Talks Avatar Sci-Fi Tech
The Hollywood Reporter currently has an article that focuses on James Cameron’s return to moviemaking in 10 years. I am talking, of course, about Cameron’s “Avatar”, which is already two and a half years in the making, and is planned for a 2009 release. (I don’t think he’ll meet that deadline myself; Cameron is such a perfectionist, and post-”Titanic”, I don’t think any studio can tell him when he has to turn in his final cut of a movie.) The THR article goes into great detail about how Cameron is shooting the movie, including all the tech breakthroughs he’s developing just for “Avatar”. It’s all very techy, and although I run a sci-fi movie blog, my eyes tend to gloss over when people get too techy with me.
