Exyle

100 Bullets

I have to say that “100 Bullets” was a comic book series that got me excited about comics again.  And now the last of the trade paperbacks has been released ending the 100 issue series with a bang - no pun intended.  The series is the brainchild of writer Brian Azzarello and artist Eduardo Risso and started back in August of 1999.  It’s a hard-edge crime series that blended noir and pulp genres with dark realism and morality.

Initially the plot of 100 Bullets hinges on the question of what would you do if you could get a chance at revenge with no recourse.  That’s right.  What if you were wronged in a horrible way and were given the chance to get revenge and get away with it?  What would you do?  The mysterious Agent Graves would approach people that have been victimized in terrible ways, and gives them a chance to set things right in the form of a simple attache case that contains an untraceable handgun , 100 untraceable bullets, a photograph of a person, and incontrovertible evidence that the target (in the photograph) presented is primarily and personally responsible for their woes.

Now, of course, it is up to the victim as to whether or not the enact their revenge…some don’t and some do to varying degrees of success and failure.  There is no punishment nor reward for taking up the offer.  Just the personal satisfaction of their actions and the fact that they now know who is responsible for their present state of circumstances.  Eventually, the attaches and Graves’ “game” as it comes to be known are revealed to be only a minor part of a much broader storyline that eventually embraces the sense that everything - and everyone - is connected.

The series won the 2002 Harvey Awards for Best Writer, Best Artist and Best Continuing Series, and the 2003 Harvey Award for Best Artist, as well as the 2001 Eisner Award for Best Serialized Story, and the 2002 and 2004 Eisner Award for Best Continuing Series.

“It’s a funeral,” Azzarello said, “Okay, it’s a wake, maybe.  We did this book for nearly 10 years.  100 issues with the same team - that doesn’t happen very often.”  When it came to the end of their 10 year journey, there was some talk of extending it.  However, in the end it was decided that concluding the story was best and the grand finale unfolded just as he had planned it 10 years earlier.  After reading it this past week, let me tell you that it was fantastic!!!

Next steps, Azzarello doesn’t rule out the possibility of a spinoff series featuring some of the remaining cast - those few that manage to stay alive at series end.  In addition the author exclaims, “Television - there’s an idea!  That all I’ll say.  Television…or maybe something that’s not just TV.”  Now anyone who has HBO knows that their slogan is “It’s not TV.  It’s HBO”  That idea is very exciting.  The comic definitely lends itself well to a television series, and it would definitely have to be an HBO type series.  It would be done a disjustice if a primetime network were to take it on.

“For it’s time, it was probably one of the most mainstream comics out there - nobody flew, no magic, no vampires,” the author explains.  “I’m definitely missing the characters.  I lived for these guys for 10 years.”

Brian, I think we are all going to miss these characters.  They were so rich and intense.  The story engulfed me in ways I was both surprised and excited about.  I want to say thank you for a great 10 years.

Anyone reading this, I would encourage you to check out this series.  It’s a grand and  fantastic crime drama saga!!

San Diego Comic-Con

So, the San Deigo Comic-Con has been going this week…and will continue through the rest of the weekend.  This is an event that is on my “Before I Die” list of things to do.  I went to MegaCon here in Orlando this year, and it was great, but Comic-Con is where it’s at I’m afraid.

So, from all the twitter feeds over the last couple days, it’s been a crazy time with lots of announcements and what not from the panels.  Here are just some noteworthy ones:

1. According to Gary Oldman, Batman 3 should start shooting next year.  Sadly, no more details than that, but I hope Nolan is behind the script and camera again.
2. Disney’s Head of Production, Oren Aviv, says that the next installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean will start filming early next year.  I’m excited to see the direction they go with the franchise now.  Jack Sparrow is a great character.
3. The sequel to Tron is finally coming to a theater near you.  Jeff Bridges is in it, and it’s going to be badass.  So pumped!!
4. I have to say that I’m starting to get really excited to see Where the Wild Things Are.  I recently came across the book again, and though there isn’t much too it, it definitely leaves an impression on you.  The trailer for the movie is incredible, and all the talk around the movie is nothing but great.  Here’s to hoping the Spike Jonze really nailed it.
5. I’m just going to say that I’ve really come to enjoy the remakes that Michael Bay’s Platinum Dunes has been doing.  I think they’ve done a great job of updating and reimagining the horror movies I grew up watching.  Obviously, they aren’t perfect, but I enjoy them nonetheless.  I say that because, the Nightmare on Elmstreet series has always been one of my favorites.  Yes, I picked Freddy to open a can on Jason in the Versus movie, but hey, you knew how it was going to end going into it anyways.  Anyways, Platinum Dunes just wrapped filming the new A Nightmare on Elmstreet and none other than Watchman’s Rorschach - played by the memorable Jackie Earle Haley - takes on the glove from series originator Robert Englund as Freddy Kruger.  I’m excited.  This movie has a lot of potential.
6. I’ve always had a small fascination with Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass.  And now the one and only Tim Burton is going to be sharing with the world his take on the classic story.  Burton’s Alice in Wonderland is going to be INCREDIBLE!!! I’m so stoked and once you’ve seen the trailer, I’m sure you’ll agree.
7. James Cameron’s Avatar.  Now I don’t even know where to begin on this one.  There have been a lot of speculation and rumors surrounding Cameron’s return to the director’s chair.  Will it be as “revolutionary” as we’ve been told?  Will it redefine cinema and movie-making as we see it today?  Only time will tell.  I for one am excited to see just what all the fuss is about.  And apparently, on August 21st…I’ll get my chance.  You can  see the panel at Comic-Con with Cameron himself here and here and get an idea of the just what the film is all about here.
8. Wanted 2 is going to start filming in 8 weeks.  James McAvoy and apparently Angelina Jolie are going to be back in front of the camera with Timur behind the camera again.  The first movie kicked ass, but was a far a comic book adaptation.  It’ll be interesting to see what direction the script goes.  Either way, it’ll be one hell of ride again.
9. The Resident Evil franchise looks to be returning to theaters with Resident Evil: Afterlife.  Milla Jovovich and even Paul W.S. Anderson - who wrote all the movies, but only directed the first - will be returning behind the camera.  Anderson says that the film will be shot with the cameras used to shoot Avatar.  That definitely sparks my interests.  It’s supposedly an entirely new kickoff to the series, so I guess we’ll see how it goes.  The games have been getting better and better, hopefully the movies can follow suit.
10. Ninja Assassin!!  Honestly, the entire movie is summed up in the title.  Directed by James McTeigue (V for Vendatta) and produced by Joel Silver and the Wachowski Brothers (Matrix Triology) and I think you get a very good idea of what’s in store for you when watching the movie.
11. District 9 - all I can say is WOW!!!  It’s an ambitious concept and idea, the trailer is badass, and from all the remarks about the movie so far, it delivers on everything and then some.  Also, apparently all the alien scenes were CGI, and it was shocking how incredibly real they were.  You can hear thoughts on the film here.  The director Neill Blomkamp definitely has made his mark.
12. Iron Man 2.  Not much can be said except for the following because the panel literally just finished, but based on the reaction, it’s going to be badass!!!  Excitement is in the air.

• “Iron man 2 footage was freakin awesome! Incredbile! Everything we want it to be!” - Geek Tyrant
• “Footage again. ScarJo looks kickass in action. Whiplash advancing on injured Stark on race track, whipping his electric tendrils” - CHUD
• “Holy Fuck Iron Man 2 was bananas!!!! WAR MACHINE LOOKS BAD FUCKING ASS.” - Latino Review
• “Its safe to say that IRON MAN 2 was by far the best shit at Comic Con 2009.” - Latino Review

Well, that’s about all I’ve got to write about really.   Exciting times ahead.  But, yes, one of these years, I will be on of the 200,000+ people attending “The Con”, and I’m going to enjoy every minute of it!!!

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Taking place two years after the first movie, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, simply put - is a bigger and louder version than its predecessor. The Autobots and humans have joined forces to create a secret military group called NEST whose sole purpose is to destroy any remaining Decepticons on Earth (A task that has been going on since the conclusion of the first movie). By the time we join our heroes in the movie, there are still more questions then answers concerning the Decepticon sightings and tensions are beginning to build between the human leaders and NEST. We also find Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) heading of to his first year in college leaving behind his girlfriend Mikaela Banes (Megan Fox) as they start the beginning stages of a long distance relationship.

To start, I don’t care what any critic out there is saying. This movie ROCKED!!! That’s not to say that they didn’t have a good argument, or even that their accusations are false, but I feel that critics these days have seriously forgotten the point of movies: TO BE ENTERTAINED!!! Heck, why do you think the Academy Awards aren’t being watched anymore? Because no one but the critics care about the movies being nominated. Now, that’s not to say they aren’t good and they don’t have a story to say, but let’s face it…on a scale of 1 to 10, honestly…how entertained are you when you watch them?

I loved every minute of this movie! And I can say that for all three times I’ve seen it so far (2 on IMAX and 1 regular)! Now, I’m obviously a bit bias because I’m a huge Transformers fan, and I’ll be the first to say that this movie was nowhere near perfect, but it was sure as hell fun and entertaining to watch. Were there plot issues? A few. Did some characters come and go with no reason? Yes. Could they have done a better job with The Fallen and Devastator? Absolutely. Did Megan Fox’s character, Mikaela, even need to be in the movie? Sadly, no (though that’s more the writer’s fault than anyone else). Did any of this really take away from the story or the entertainment value of the movie? No. These issues, though they are undeniably there, do not affect this movies like they might others because this movie is about entertaining the audience. It’s not out there to make awards (at least by the Academy’s standards). It’s goal is to transport you into an alternate reality with talking, transforming, alien robots. And if you believe it, then people behind the movie succeeded.

Bottomline, if you enjoyed the first movie, you’ll enjoy Revenge of the Fallen. In addition, the same can be said in reverse; if you hated the first, you’ll hate the sequel. It’s more of the same, just amplified. My issues with the first movie were resolved, however, more were created. Trust me, this movie - from a plot standpoint - had such amazing potential. The mythology of the Transformers is awesome and there’s so much to work with. I’ll be the first to say that it is a shame that the movie didn’t deliver on that front. They were really cheap when discussing the original Primes and the Fallen’s relationship with the Decepticons. It’s an unfortunate missed opportunity to really expand on the Transformers movie universe. They short changed it. Now, I’m sure the writer’s strike had something to do with it, but I still feel that the strike cannot take full blame for the movie’s shortcomings.

On the action side however, props to Bay and ILM for delivering some amazing stuff!! Optimus Prime and Bumblebee really had a chance to shine and it was GLORIOUS!!! I’m sorry, but the scenes they are in alone - for me at least - are worth the price of admission (however many times I see the movie). They are truly awe-inspiring to me.

Take this look at the movie as you will. I think perhaps some new blood from a writing standpoint would do the series some good, but Michael Bay is the director of this franchise. He was made for these movies, and no one else can truly bring the Transformers to life on the proper scale like Bay. If you liked the first film, go and see Revenge of the Fallen. You won’t be disappointed.

Terminator Salvation

Terminator Salvation - the fourth installment of the franchise - was one of the movies this year that I was really looking forward to.  Having been a fan of the previous films, as well as the Fox series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, the anticipation was pretty high.  Add that I’m a big Christian Bale fan, and the previews for the film were fantastic, this film had a lot going for it in my eyes.  Sadly however, it was not able to meet expectations.

The film stars Christian Bale as the legendary John Connor - the eventual leader of mankind’s fight against the machines, and a new character by the name of Marcus Wright, played by the up and coming Sam Worthington.  The setting is 2018 and deals with the battle against the machines in a post Judgment Day world.  McG, who doesn’t exactly have the greatest film history directed.

Now, this movie had so much potential, but it was going to be an uphill battle.  To begin with - and to my understanding this could be a first - the film was going to be part of a Saga, yet have very little resemblence to it’s predecessors.  The previous films before had time travel, thus having a more “present day” feel, Sarah Connor, and Arnold playing a good Terminator, a protector.  It was going to be a different type of Terminator movie.  It wasn’t going to be the same formula of protect John Connor and there in lies the double edge sword.  There is a huge amount of new and exciting territory to cover which has the potential to make a great movie, however, would audiences be open to a new or different formula when it comes to a Terminator movie?

I for one, was ready to see a badass John Connor - or at least the beginnings of one.  I was excited to see the creation of the Terminators and the resistance.  However, this is where the story didn’t work.  It wasn’t the acting - I felt the performances were fantastic and the actors did great with what they were given, and I won’t really put the bulk of the my faults with the movie completely on McG.  The cinematography and presentation of the film was fantastic.  I felt he did a great job with the world and I bought into it.  The issue, in my opinion is all with the plot.  I think that anyone who is any kind of Terminator fan has been waiting to see the John Connor that the previous films make him out to be.  And I know that we were definitely expecting him - especially from the previews - to be the center of the film.  And that my friend is where they messed up.  The writers made John Connor practically a secondary character.  Why in the heck would you do that?  Why would you make him second-billing to a “new” Terminator that has next no backstory or explanation given?  This is even more shocking when you realize that Christian Bale wouldn’t have even signed on for the role until they made the Connor role bigger.  Makes you wonder what the original script was like.  All in all, even aside from all the plot holes and unexplained events throughout the film, I feel that the movie missed the mark because it forgot was it was about.  The Saga is about John Connor…NOT the Terminators.  (This is one of the reasons it’s a shame  that the Sarah Connor Chronicles was canceled.  They were doing it right.)

If you are any kind of Terminator fan, you still have to see it - even if you only ever watch it once.  I wanted so much to like this movie, and though I did find it enjoyable from an entertainment standpoint, being a fan of the Terminator Saga, I just couldn’t get past that fact that the movie just played out in and way that was unexpected.  Last I heard, there was talk that the sequal was going forward - this movie was envisioned as the start of a new trilogy.  I still think they can salvage things and make it right in the coming movies.  All was not lost in this film.  It did a great job creating the world, now they just need to do a great job of writing what happens in it.

Star Trek

Star Trek was a movie I was really looking forward to seeing this year, and let me tell you - it did not disappoint.  Entertaining and exciting from the first minute to the last minute, I - as well as many many others - found the experience of watching the movie very exhilerating!  For those that don’t know anything about this movie, it is a reboot/resurrection of the classic science fiction franchise of the same name that was created by Gene Roddenberry.  J J Abrams, the director, creates a feature that “embraces the rich history of the influential television and film series while also exploring some uncharted territory” (AMG).

The film stars Herores star Zachary Quinto as the Federation Starfleet lieutenant and Vulcan Spock, the character made famous in the original series by Leonard Nimoy.  Anton Yelchin, star of Billy Elliot and the recently released Terminator Salvation movie, assumes the role of Pavel Chekov.  Zoe Saldana filled the shoes of Uhura.  The hilarious and scene-stealing Simon Pegg played Montgomery “Scotty” Scott and John Cho of Harold and Kumar fame played the role of Hikaru Sulu.

Now, aside from Spock, the two most pivotal roles in the film belong to Leonard “Bones” McCoy and the legendary Captain James T. Kirk.  Karl Urban and Chris Pine performed these roles, respectively, and similarly with all the cast, did and absolutely phenomenal job.  Following in the footsteps of the people that originiated the roles is not an easy task.  Everyone was able to embody the character yet still make it their own.

J J Abrams, togther with his screenwriters Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci of Transformers and the upcoming sequel fame, did a fantastic job or reinventing the series.  They were able to create an exciting adventure.  One that was daring and inventive, yet true in form and function.  The idea was to create a movie that would appease both current Star Trek fans as well as create new ones, and this movie definitely delivered.  The film featured a number of laughs and was action packed.  It was filled with emotion and awe.  At the end of the movie, you just wanted more!  In addition, they were able to create a new canon without defacing the old one.  The world is open to new and exciting possibilities with the franchise.  They can proceed without the worry of continuity and canon issues, and to me, that in it of itself is a fantastic accomplishment.  If you haven’t seen this movie yet, go see it.  Even for the non-sci-fi junkie, the movie is fun for all.

Quantum of Solace

Quantum of Solace is the latest 007 movie.  Following the betrayal and death of Vesper Lynd, James Bond (Daniel Craig) makes his next mission personal. The hunt for those who blackmailed his lover leads Bond to ruthless businessman Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric), a key player in the organization which coerced Vesper. Bond learns that Greene is plotting to gain total control of a vital natural resource, and must navigate a minefield of danger and treachery to foil Greene’s plan.

As soon as you start watching the movie…it’s over, and sadly, that’s the good news.  I cannot complain that this action movie keeps you entertained.  You are definitely on scensory overload.  However, this is all the movie has going for it.  There’s next to no plot - and plot holes, horrible editing and camera angles, and nothing that really resembles a James Bond we have seen before.

I’ve decided not to ramble on and on about my issues with the movie.  I’ve decided to save time and just point you - the reader - to Garth Franklin’s review.  Surprisingly we tend to view movies in the same way, and honestly, why reinvent the wheel when he’s already written everything I would write here.

Sex Drive

Sex Drive is a movie that follows a dorky teen named Ian on a 500 mile trip to lose his virginity.  He has just turned 18, and he feels like the last American virgin.  He works at the mall donut shop, he’s taunted by his womanizing older brother, Rex, and he’s even losing ladies to his 14-year-old brother.  Having struck out time and again with his dream girl and longtime friend, Felicia, Ian finally resorts to logging on and looking for a date online.  In a stunning turn of events, Ian manages to chat up a beautiful blonde name Ms. Tasty, who’s eager to be his first.  She’s fun, she’s sexy, and she’s everything that Ian has ever wanted in a girlfriend.  The only thing preventing them from consummating their relationship now is the distance between them; Ian lives in Chicago and Ms. Tasty lives 500 miles away in Knoxville.  But it’s easy to pretend that you’re someone you’re not online, and Ian hasn’t exactly been honest about his appearance in the first place.  Still, he’s sure he could charm Ms. Tasty all the same once he meets her in person, so he takes the advice of his best friend Lance and prepares to take Ms. Tasty up on her offer to “go all the way” for him if he “drives all the way” for her.  Let the “sex drive” begin.  (Synopsis provided by AMG)

Unfortunately there’s not much to this movie.  It is full of clichés and gags that have been seen before and done better.  Now don’t get me wrong, it definitely has its funny moments, but I couldn’t help but think I’ve already seen it before.  Flashes of “Not Another Teen Movie”, “Trojan War”, and “American Pie” crossed my mind throughout the movie.  The movie’s only saving grace are the scenes that have Seth Green and James Marsden in them.  These two actors were absolutely hilarious and stood out so much, you find yourself wishing the movie was following their characters.

If you enjoy the typical teen sex comedies you will probably find yourself enjoying this movie, but it is definitely not “Superbad” and should not be in considered in a comparison with it.  If you decide you want to see this movie at all, I would suggest it is a rental at best.  The performances of Seth Green and James Marsden are easily worth that price.