The interwebs are beginning to fill up with very good word about The Dark Knight Rises.
After the massive disappointment of Prometheus (seriously, Sir Ridley, what were you thinking?) and the enjoyable but ultimately frustrating Amazing Spider-Man, something is telling me to temper my expectations for other big releases this year. But the more I hear about the finale to Christopher Nolan's Batman series, the more I want to do an Eric Cartman and find some way to hibernate for the next 19 days until the movie comes out. I may have to make do with a double bill of Batman Begins (still a weak title) and The Dark Knight at Cineworld in a week and a half. The Cameo is doing all three films, from 11.30pm on the 19th, finishing with The Dark Knight Rises at 6.30am but I won't be doing that - their seats are so damn comfortable I'd likely not make it 30 minutes into the first film.
Some spoilers are slipping out now so blindfolds on, fingers crossed and find other things to do...
Until, of course, it comes time for Warner Bros to start a new Batman series (I hate using that word, "reboot"), which I have little problem with, as much as I love the Nolan films. I'd like to see something a little closer to the recent comics. Quite a fan of the look Jim Lee gave Batman. Very curious as to which direction they choose to go. Nolan has given us a very real world Batman and the degree of direction change is going to be very tough for whomever succeeds him.
Saturday, 7 July 2012
Accidental Ego
Somehow, after following two other blogs this morning, I've managed to become a follower of my own blog. Who the hell follows their own blog? Who the hell needs to? Purely accidental.
Good things do happen.
This is one of the best things I have ever seen.
Ron Perlman donned the Hellboy make up (a process I hear can take up to 4 hours at times) to help make the wish of young Zachary, as part of the US Make A Wish Foundation. Zach not only wanted to meet Big Red himself but also wanted to become Hellboy. So the guys at Spectral Motion granted this for him.
People can be good. In fact, in all of the useless cynicism of today - not all of it is useless, mind you, it can just be a lazy default setting for some folks who don't know they're alive - we get to see a good deed like this. I always liked Ron Perlman and this just seals the deal. Hellboy 3 is meant to be very unlikely as he says he's getting on and isn't keen on the daily make up sessions anymore. As others have said elsewhere, what a class act.
You can see more photos of this amazing day at Spectral Motion's Facebook Album.
The UK Make a Wish Foundation can also be found here.
Ron Perlman donned the Hellboy make up (a process I hear can take up to 4 hours at times) to help make the wish of young Zachary, as part of the US Make A Wish Foundation. Zach not only wanted to meet Big Red himself but also wanted to become Hellboy. So the guys at Spectral Motion granted this for him.
People can be good. In fact, in all of the useless cynicism of today - not all of it is useless, mind you, it can just be a lazy default setting for some folks who don't know they're alive - we get to see a good deed like this. I always liked Ron Perlman and this just seals the deal. Hellboy 3 is meant to be very unlikely as he says he's getting on and isn't keen on the daily make up sessions anymore. As others have said elsewhere, what a class act.
You can see more photos of this amazing day at Spectral Motion's Facebook Album.
The UK Make a Wish Foundation can also be found here.
Monday, 2 July 2012
Django Unchained
Everyone has been going on (quite rightfully in most cases) about several films that are most anticipated this year, namely The Avengers (yay!), Prometheus (boo!) The Dark Knight Rises, Skyfall and The Hobbit. But there is another movie out later this year that most definitely sits in that category.
I stone cold LOVED Inglourious Bastards and Django Unchained seems to be taking the same kind of bent to a different genre. I'm really glad Tarantino's cast Christoph Waltz as Dr King Schultz. Bring it on, Mr T.
I'll be bracing myself for The Amazing Spider-Man tomorrow. Please don't be crap...
I'll be bracing myself for The Amazing Spider-Man tomorrow. Please don't be crap...
Sunday, 1 July 2012
Gratitude
Wow. I posted about the new website on Facebook earlier today and not only has it had over 100 hits (yes, I know, first day glories soon to drop off) but this blog has today had the most hits ever.
A massive thank you to folks who have been spreading the word about the new site.
Now to get on with some glamourous work. That garden won't dig itself...
A massive thank you to folks who have been spreading the word about the new site.
Now to get on with some glamourous work. That garden won't dig itself...
Total Recall. Again.
I'll be seeing Total Recall in cinemas this summer. But it won't be the remake.
Rebirth?
After a bit of a down period, I've got my backside in gear and created a professional website now to put myself out there in the real world. Time to stop hiding the light under the old bushel (what the hell is a bushel anyway?) and push myself in a more professional manner.
So, my details can now be found at robinsonwritesfilm where you can also find some samples of my screenwriting, previous experience and some films I've made or contributed to. I can see the website expanding over time with more things and a better headshot. It also links to this blog and consequently I'm considering changing the name of the blog to keep it in line with the new website but the old content will remain. If I do, there'll be plenty of warning about changing where to go to if you want to continue to observe my haverings.
This is a good thing.
So, my details can now be found at robinsonwritesfilm where you can also find some samples of my screenwriting, previous experience and some films I've made or contributed to. I can see the website expanding over time with more things and a better headshot. It also links to this blog and consequently I'm considering changing the name of the blog to keep it in line with the new website but the old content will remain. If I do, there'll be plenty of warning about changing where to go to if you want to continue to observe my haverings.
This is a good thing.
Sunday, 4 March 2012
Ralph McQuarrie
Another little bit of my childhood passed into eternity tonight.
Ralph McQuarrie started out as an industrial graphic designer. His work for NASA around the moon landings caught the attention of filmmakers but it was one in particular who really let McQuarrie's imagination loose on all of our eyes; yep, that fella again, George Lucas.
In an effort to try and raise funding for his embryonic project, The Star Wars (as it was known at that time), Lucas employed the awesome talents of McQuarrie to try and convey his proposed film in visual terms. McQuarrie was tasked with creating quality paintings that encapsulated specific scenes from what was (I believe) merely an outline and a series of ideas that Lucas had at the time. While his work for NASA showed his talent for designing believable space craft, his work on Star Wars also showed a flair for character design, be it human, alien or droid. Many of these images persevered and survive in culturally iconic form in the finished film as we still know it today. Such was McQuarrie's talent. And he helped keep Star Wars alive visually, being a major contributor to Coruscant in the Shadows of the Empire project, something that carried over into the prequels.
Or to put it another way, he pretty much designed Darth Vader. No mean feat.
McQuarrie went on to design further aspects of Star Wars and did the same for The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi and contributed to the Indiana Jones films and other movies and his work is even felt in its influence of designers such as Doug Chiang and Ian Gracie in the newer Star Wars films.
In a time when we lose guys like Ralph and Bob Anderson (the sword master from the original trilogy - when we saw Vader duel, it was mostly Bob) I feel that little bit older. Ralph was 82 but this still feels like a bit of a gut punch to this geek.
Thank you, Mr McQuarrie. Word has it you were a kind, self effacing gentleman. Thanks for all the wonderful sights you filled my life with.
Ralph McQuarrie started out as an industrial graphic designer. His work for NASA around the moon landings caught the attention of filmmakers but it was one in particular who really let McQuarrie's imagination loose on all of our eyes; yep, that fella again, George Lucas.
In an effort to try and raise funding for his embryonic project, The Star Wars (as it was known at that time), Lucas employed the awesome talents of McQuarrie to try and convey his proposed film in visual terms. McQuarrie was tasked with creating quality paintings that encapsulated specific scenes from what was (I believe) merely an outline and a series of ideas that Lucas had at the time. While his work for NASA showed his talent for designing believable space craft, his work on Star Wars also showed a flair for character design, be it human, alien or droid. Many of these images persevered and survive in culturally iconic form in the finished film as we still know it today. Such was McQuarrie's talent. And he helped keep Star Wars alive visually, being a major contributor to Coruscant in the Shadows of the Empire project, something that carried over into the prequels.
Or to put it another way, he pretty much designed Darth Vader. No mean feat.
McQuarrie went on to design further aspects of Star Wars and did the same for The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi and contributed to the Indiana Jones films and other movies and his work is even felt in its influence of designers such as Doug Chiang and Ian Gracie in the newer Star Wars films.
In a time when we lose guys like Ralph and Bob Anderson (the sword master from the original trilogy - when we saw Vader duel, it was mostly Bob) I feel that little bit older. Ralph was 82 but this still feels like a bit of a gut punch to this geek.
Thank you, Mr McQuarrie. Word has it you were a kind, self effacing gentleman. Thanks for all the wonderful sights you filled my life with.
Thursday, 1 March 2012
Of Tinned Tomatoes and Oscars.
In the summer of 1984, the BBC was broadcasting the summer Olympics from Los Angeles, mostly late at night due to the time difference. It seemed a pretty big deal at the time and ITV, in an effort to counter this in the ratings, began broadcasting a mini series from the US that appeared to have done well; V, a tale of alien invasion and a tribute to resistance fighters and those who stand up against fascist oppression, but done with laser guns and spaceships. Disregarding any thought of the recent limp remake, I loved it. As an 11 year old who was allowed to stay up late to watch this sci-fi show, I appreciated it and lapped it up. The alien invaders were known as the Visitors who, while they appeared benevolent and looked human thanks to rubber skin, were actually reptiles bent on world domination, water theft and human rotisserie. And as I recall, there was a particular scene where one of the aliens Visitors, Willie (played by a sympathetic Robert England) is brought before some youngsters by human resistance fighters in an effort to show them who they really are and has the fake skin ripped from the back of his hand, revealing scaly reptile skin underneath. It was a great moment and one we would talk about at school for a while.
The next morning a friend was coming over to hang out, it being the summer holidays. This friend also loved movie make up, especially the old Universal monsters and the work of guys like Jack Pierce and Dick Smith, and would try out experiments on himself with putty, yak hair and greasepaint. This particular morning the doorbells rings and I go to get it, expecting my friend and rightfully so. There he was. And with a simple "Hello", he raised his arm and proceeded to tear the skin from the back of his forearm, revealing green, scaly reptile flesh underneath; perhaps I should reiterate that we were both 11 at the time. And I think my immediate reaction was pretty much, "Wow". This was just part of an ongoing passion my friend had with special effects make up and it got better as we progressed through school, making films where fake severed limbs, ripped eyes and washing up liquid bottles full of tinned tomatoes were sprayed at walls and faces were a relatively regular occurrence.
Some people leave that kind of thing behind when they leave school and enter the world of grown ups. And some people don't. Nor should they ever.
And so, sitting next to a good friend when they find out that something they worked on in a rather major way has just won an Academy Award is a pretty good feeling.
Taken a few days to write this, but I figured, what the hell. Congratulations to Mark Coulier, Stephen Murphy (said friend) Barrie Gower and everyone else who contributed to the make up for The Iron Lady.
The next morning a friend was coming over to hang out, it being the summer holidays. This friend also loved movie make up, especially the old Universal monsters and the work of guys like Jack Pierce and Dick Smith, and would try out experiments on himself with putty, yak hair and greasepaint. This particular morning the doorbells rings and I go to get it, expecting my friend and rightfully so. There he was. And with a simple "Hello", he raised his arm and proceeded to tear the skin from the back of his forearm, revealing green, scaly reptile flesh underneath; perhaps I should reiterate that we were both 11 at the time. And I think my immediate reaction was pretty much, "Wow". This was just part of an ongoing passion my friend had with special effects make up and it got better as we progressed through school, making films where fake severed limbs, ripped eyes and washing up liquid bottles full of tinned tomatoes were sprayed at walls and faces were a relatively regular occurrence.
Some people leave that kind of thing behind when they leave school and enter the world of grown ups. And some people don't. Nor should they ever.
And so, sitting next to a good friend when they find out that something they worked on in a rather major way has just won an Academy Award is a pretty good feeling.
Taken a few days to write this, but I figured, what the hell. Congratulations to Mark Coulier, Stephen Murphy (said friend) Barrie Gower and everyone else who contributed to the make up for The Iron Lady.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)