News: FOX ATOMIC ANNOUNCES PRESENCE AT SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON 2007

FOX ATOMIC ANNOUNCES PRESENCE AT SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON 2007



LOS ANGELES, CA, JULY 23, 2007 – Fox Atomic announced today its plans for the upcoming Comic-Con International Convention in San Diego, CA on July 26-29. The initiatives planned will include signings and giveaways on behalf of the Fox Atomic graphic novels The Nightmare Factory (retails 9/07), 28 Days Later: The Aftermath, and The Hills Have Eyes: The Beginning; an online sweepstakes to win the 1969 Ford Mustang from the film Death Sentence (8/31), starring Kevin Bacon, John Goodman, and Kelly Preston, and directed by James Wan (Saw); and a contest at the Fox Atomic booth where fans enter to win a Fender Stratocaster guitar signed by the cast of The Rocker, which stars Rainn Wilson and Christina Applegate.

On September 4, 2007, Fox Atomic Comics will release The Nightmare Factory, a compilation of short stories based on the work of horror writer Thomas Ligotti. The Nightmare Factory is the third graphic novel to be released by Fox Atomic Comics, the graphic novel publishing arm of the studio that enjoyed glowing reviews and exceptional sales for its debut book 28 Days Later: The Aftermath, written by horror master Steve Niles (30 Days of Night), as well as for their second novel The Hills Have Eyes: The Beginning, written by comics veterans Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray. On hand at the booth throughout the day to discuss these novels will be artists Ben Templesmith, Ted McKeever, and Michael Gaydos, and writers Joe Harris and Stuart Moore (The Nightmare Factory); writer Steve Niles and cover artist Tim Bradstreet (28 Days Later: The Aftermath); and writers Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray (The Hills Have Eyes: The Beginning).

On behalf of Fox Atomic’s upcoming film Death Sentence (8/31), Kevin Bacon, Garrett Hedlund, and director James Wan (Saw) will be participating in a booth signing on Saturday, 7/28 at 3 PM. Fox Atomic will also launch an online sweepstakes to win the 1969 Ford Mustang from the film. The contest officially begins when the doors to Comic-Con open on Wednesday, 7/25. Fans can enter to win at the computer kiosks set up at the booth or at the official movie website, deathsentencemovie.com, until opening day, 8/31. Moreover, Fox Atomic will release a limited edition poster of the film that will be exclusive to Comic-Con.

In anticipation of the forthcoming film The Rocker, starring Rainn Wilson, Christina Applegate, Josh Gad, Emma Stone, and Jeff Garlin, Fox Atomic will launch a contest at the booth where fans enter to win a Fender Stratocaster guitar signed by the cast. The contest commences when the doors to Comic-Con open on Wednesday, 7/25 and closes when the Convention ends on Sunday, 7/29.


About Fox Atomic
Fox Atomic is a culturally branded entertainment company providing theatrical movies and digital content targeting the 17-24 year old demographic. Their next release will be the sports comedy The Comebacks (October 26th). Atomic also houses a graphic novel division, with distribution through sister company HarperCollins. Their next graphic novel, “The Nightmare Factory,” will be released on September 4th. “28 Days Later: The Aftermath,” Atomic’s first graphic novel, hit shelves on April 3rd. Shortly following was “The Hills Have Eyes: The Beginning” (July ’07). Formed in 2006, this new entity of Fox Filmed Entertainment produces and acquires product spanning all media platforms, and various genres.

Go YELLOW on July 27th in support of the Simpsons!

GO YELLOW

FRIDAY JULY 27^TH

in support of

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE

It takes a wide screen to fully capture Homer Simpson’s stupidity, and THE SIMPSONS MOVIE does it. On Friday, July 27^th, 20^th Century Fox will release the eagerly-awaited animated feature film based on the hit TV series, worldwide! In support of the world’s first family of comedy, The Simpson’s, everyone will be encouraged to GO YELLOW by simply……..wearing YELLOW on Friday, July 27^th! So pull out your favorite YELLOW t-shirt, sweater, baseball hat or even that itsy-bitsy tiny weenie YELLOW polka dot bikini, and show Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie how much we love them!

In THE SIMPSONS MOVIE, Homer must save the world from a catastrophe he himself created. Starring in the animated film are Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer, Pamela Hayden, Tress MacNeille, and Albert Brooks. Producing the feature are “The Simpsons” series executive producer James L. Brooks, creator Matt Groening, current showrunner Al Jean, Mike Scully and Richard Sakai. The script is written by Groening, Brooks, Jean, Scully, Ian Maxtone-Graham, George Meyer, David Mirkin, Mike Reiss, Matt Selman, John Swartzwelder, and Jon Vitti – all series veterans. David Silverman (MONSTERS, INC.), the series’ supervising animation director, is helming the feature. THE SIMPSONS MOVIE is rated PG-13 and opens in theaters on July 27^th.

GO YELLOW – FRIDAY JULY 27th

DVD Review Link: Barb Wire by ME

Here is something a little different. My second contribution to The Comic Book Bin's Dark Horse month is a review of the 1996 Pamela Anderson vehicle Barb Wire. Since the review is for them, I am just going to post a link to it here. Please, come back and comment.

Keep reading,
Mitch E
mitchemerson@hotmail.com

Movie Review: Talk To Me by ME

Title: Talk To Me
Starring: Don Cheadle, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Taraji Henson, Cedric The Entertainer, Mike Epps
Directed By: Kasi Lemmons
Produced By: Miles Dale, William Horberg, Bruce Toll
Genre: Drama and Biopic
Release Date: July 13th, 2007
MPAA Rating: R for pervasive language and some sexual content.
Distributors: Focus Features

Don Cheadle is a phenomenal actor and proves it once again with Talk To Me, the story of Washington D.C. D.J. Petey Greene (Don Cheadle). From his beginnings as a DJ in prison in 1966 to his appearance on The Tonight Show, Talk To Me follows the ups and downs of Petey, Dewey Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Vernell Watson (Taraji P. Henson).

As an unknown director, well, unknown to me, Kasi Lemmons directs this gem of a film perfectly with a great blend of humor and gravity. One moment you have our characters reacting to the death of Martin Luther King Jr., which on a side note, really got to me how it was done, and then you get Don Cheadle pulling a Tom Cruise, dancing in his underwear. In a period piece like this it is hard to work celebrity personalities that are well known into a film when they are supposed to be roughly 40 years younger at the time. Talk To Me handles this issue in a number of ways, and does it well. Actual footage, lookalikes and most interestingly a combination of the two. One scene has Johnny Carson out of focus in the background, then the camera pans down to a monitor where they used actual footage from The Tonight Show. I thought it was pretty nifty so I decided to mention it here.

I am really beginning to like Don Cheadle as an actor. Although I prefer him in semi funny roles, he is a great dramatic actor that has a presence that can exude sadness or happiness, sometimes at the same time. He is definitely one of the better actors out there and with a slick radio voice and a colorful wardrobe, he is perfect as Petey Greene. Chiwetel Ejiofor is definitely making his way up the ladder. My first introduction to was as the extremely polite, yet deadly assassin in Serenity where he was just a bad ass. Then came Children Of Men where everyone was on the ball. He does a great job here first as a self righteous ass, then as a friend to Petey, then a rival and back to friend again.

For supporting roles, we have few worth mentioning. Taraji Henson is spunky as hell as Greene's girlfriend/wife and provides a lot of, shall we say color to the film. I don't know if they ever got married but she puts up with more crap than most wives that I know. Other cast members worth mention in supporting roles are Cedric The Entertainer (Who needs to stick to smaller roles like this instead of starring in crap like Codename: The Cleaner) as fellow D.J. Nighthawk, Martin Sheen who is funny as the straight laced radio station owner, and Mike Epps, who is way underused as Dewey's brother Milo.

The only thing that makes Talk To Me a little difficult to deal with is the language. This movie is rated R for a reason and there is a ton of bad language. Now this didn't hurt the film in my eyes as they are just "keeping it real", but some viewers may be turned off by it.

Until Petey Greene does a morning show with Adrian Cronauer,
keep reading (yes I know Petey is dead, but I needed a joke).

Mitch E.
mitchemerson@hotmail.com

5 out of 5

Movie Review: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by ME

Title: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes, Gary Oldman
Directed By: David Yates
Produced By: Lionel Wigram, Tanya Seghatchian, Antony Hunt
Genre: Action/Adventure, Kids/Family, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Adaptation and Sequel
Release Date: July 11th, 2007
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action violence, brief sexual humor and language.
Distributors: Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution

Fun time at Hogwarts has come to an end. With Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) having returned, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint), Hermione (Emma Watson), and newcomer Luna Lovegood (Evanna Lynch) create the Army of Dumbledore. Training secretly while trying to deal with totalitarian rules imposed by Delores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton), the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor appointed by the Ministry of Magic, Harry and co. try to prepare for a war that no one can be ready for.

Before we start, I want to tell you that i have not read the book OOTP. This will not be a book to movie comparison.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix is by far the best of the series. David Yates puts an even darker spin on the popular series than his predecessors. And rightfully so, for when it comes to Lord Voldemort's return, education must come second after preparation for war. Yes there is a difference, just look at Delores Umbridge's method of teaching. All books and no magic make for poor survival skills. Gone is a lot of the fun and games that have given the other films a lighter mood. The action and danger have been ramped up a few notches. The final battle in the film starts as a free for all with spectacular effects as well as an emotional element that could tear Harry apart.

The whole crew is back in some shape or form. So just a few quick notes. Daniel Radcliffe has become quite the actor, giving Harry a new depth through his portrayal of anguish and turmoil. Newcomer Evanna Lynch plays Luna Lovegood with the perfect amount of spaciness. Alan Rickman gets to shine as Severus Snapes in at least one scene. Helena Bonham Carter plays crazy very well. Anybody else think she looks just like she did in Novocaine? Lastly, I would not want to be Imelda Staunton. She plays Delores Umbridge so perfectly annoying that I will bet that she is going to be receiving a ton of hate mail from younger fans. Even I wanted to strangle her.

I know that this review does not do the movie justice. I cannot begin to describe the feelings that this chapter in the story has visited upon me. From the beginning to the end you get foreboding, anxiety, apprehension, exultation and elation but with an underlying knowledge that this is just the beginning of the trials and tribulations for these characters that we have all come to know and love over the past six years. I can't wait until the next one!

Until Harry Potter and the Geriatric Gremlins,
Keep reading

Mitch E
mitchemerson@hotmail.com

Movie Review: License To Wed by ME

Title: License to Wed
Starring: Robin Williams, Mandy Moore, John Krasinski, Christine Taylor, Roxanne Hart
Directed By: Ken Kwapis
Produced By: Bradley Fischer, David Thwaites, Kim Zubick (II)
Genre: Comedy
Release Date: July 3rd, 2007
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sexual humor and language.
Distributors: Warner Bros. Pictures Distribution

In License To Wed, Robin Williams plays Reverend Frank, an unorthodox (I'll say!) marriage counselor who requires prospective wedding vow takers to complete a “Marriage Preparation Course” before tying the knot in his church. With annoying little sidekick Choir Boy, which isn't his character name, but it's all I could find online, Rev. Frank is about to make Ben and Sadie's engagement a living hell.

License To Wed is actually a romantic comedy masquerading as a Robin Williams movie. On the outside this film can be seen as just another Robin Williams movie but what comes through, subtly at first, is how the bond of love needs to be tempered to become strong. And if anything can do it, it's Rev. Frank's course. Although the film suffers from “Traileritis”, an affliction where all the best scenes are revealed in the trailer, most of those scenes are a bit longer and funnier. The best scene comedy wise has to be the robot baby scenes, where Ben and Sadie are given robotic twin babies to take care of and these things go haywire in a mall. Did I forget to mention that they are also watching a friends two kids at the same time? Now don't get me wrong, the film is a pretty good comedy but for some reason, I was actually able to read a little more into it than what I usually do. The base feeling is that Ben and Sadie love each other and are willing to go through hell to be with each other; although that realization comes at different moments for each of them.

In comedies like this no one really gets to stretch their acting wings. Robin Williams is Robin Williams, John Krasinski basically is the same as his character from The Office, Mandy Moore is pretty much rehashing her character Milly from Because I Said So and is unbelievable as a control freak in denial because she looks too much like a sweetheart. There are quite a few familiar faces peppered throughout the film including Christine Taylor, Eric Christian Olsen and The Office regulars Mindy Kaling, Angela Kinsey, Rachael Harris and Brian Baumgartner. One last mention, there is a kid credited as Choir Boy, played by Josh Flitter. Seems like an afterthought tossed in the script at the last minute, not to mention being a blatant rip off blended from Andy Milonakis and the The Man Show boy. He just annoyed the hell out of me.

While not quite as misrepresented as Man of the Year, License to Wed is not a Robin Williams movie as we know and love him, but it is still a pretty decent romantic comedy that would work as a date movie, or maybe not, seeing as this takes all the things that could go wrong in a marriage and turns it up to 11. But don't distress! There is actually a message and coupled with some decent laughs, License to Wed will provide you with an evening of amusing entertainment.

Until we get Mork and Mindy: The Movie,
Keep reading

Mitch E
mitchemerson@hotmail.com

Movie Review: Transformers by ME

Title: Transformers
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Josh Duhamel, Bernie Mac, John Turturro, Tyrese Gibson
Directed By: Michael Bay
Produced By: Steven Spielberg, Brian Goldner, Michael Bay
Genre: Action/Adventure, Science Fiction/Fantasy and Adaptation
Release Date: July 2nd, 2007
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action violence, brief sexual humor and language.
Distributors: di Bonaventura Pictures, Inc., Paramount Pictures

For centuries, two races of robotic aliens – the Autobots and the Decepticons – have waged a war, with the fate of the universe at stake. When the battle comes to Earth, all that stands between the evil Decepticons and ultimate power is a clue held by young Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf). An average teenager, Sam is consumed with everyday worries about school, friends, cars and girls. Unaware that he alone is mankind's last chance for survival, Sam and his friend Mikaela (Megan Fox) find themselves in a tug of war between the Autobots and Decepticons. With the world hanging in the balance, Sam comes to realize the true meaning behind the Witwicky family motto - “No sacrifice, no victory!” -Official Transformers Site

For those of you who have been under a rock for the last year or two, there has been a lot of controversy about Michael Bay's vision of the Transformers. From voice casting to the makes of the cars to paint jobs, everything has been in question by purists who hate it when people take liberties with their childhood memories. As a kid, between me and my step-brother, we had at least two dozen Transformer toys and we watched the show religiously. So before you go saying that they changed this and they ruined that let me say, I KNOW! I saw the movie, and you know what? It doesn't matter. Bay and company got the spirit right. Which isn't hard considering it's good robots against bad robots with humanity stuck in the middle.

The story is almost irrelevant in movies like this. It just serves as an excuse to get these robots fighting. I'm not saying that the story line is bad, just that I didn't care as long as the action, effects and general feel of the movie kept me riveted. And one thing you have got to give Michael Bay credit for is that the man knows how to do action. With 8 or 9 robots fighting and throwing tanks and cars around, car chases galore, robot free for alls and screaming jets, Bay is in perfect form. I have never seen better effects, ever. Not once did I say FAKE! or anything. While the transformations had a few too many moving parts and weren't consistent as to how long each transformation took, they still looked spectacular. And to hear Peter Cullen's voice come from Optimus Prime was worth the price of admission alone.

Which leads to casting. Shia LaBeouf has been ridiculed and hated by hardcore fans. But you know what, he is fine in this. Sure there are moments where he needs to lay off the Red Bull, but he is a neurotic teenager who has to help save the world. All while looking cool for Megan Fox, who, btw, is way too hot to be in this movie. Besides LaBeouf's Sam, this almost feels like an ensemble cast. You have Josh Duhamel. Tyrese Gibson, Jon Voight, Anthony Anderson and John Turturro. And Turturro takes the cake as the most useless and pointless government employee ever. Played over the top and out of place, I think that he actually hurts the film. Anthony Anderson takes second place as the second most useless character playing a genius computer hacker. I have no complaints about any of the Transformers voices. While not exactly the same as they were in the cartoon, with the exception of Optimus Prime, who is voiced by original cartoon actor Peter Cullen, all voices work well. Many have expressed disdain for Hugo Weaving as Megatron, but you can hardly tell it's him.

Only two things I can complain about. The little CD boombox Decepticon was just plain annoying. He was too much like a monkey crossed with a gremlin and was just too comical and out of place when put in perspective with the rest of the Decepticons. The other is a scene in which Sam must hide the 30 foot tall Autobots from his parents. It almost degrades into something you would see in a Three Stooges short.

I think Transformers just may be the first big blockbuster of the summer and if you have any remote interest, you should see it in theaters at least once.

Visit the official site here - http://www.transformersmovie.com/

Until Transformers vs. the Go-Bots,
keep reading

Mitch E.
mitchemerson@hotmail.com