• Johann Krauss is voiced by Seth McFarlane, creator of Family Guy; McFarlane also provides the voices for many of the characters on Family Guy and American Dad!
• Abe Sapien was voiced by David Hyde Pierce (uncredited) in the first movie; he is now voiced by the actor in the costume, Doug Jones
• Director Guillermo Del Toro (who also directed the first movie, in addition to many other fine films) turned down the opportunities to direct the Halo movie, I Am Legend, and the next Harry Potter movie so he could focus on this film
• Ron Perlman (who plays Hellboy) was offered the role of Piccolo in a live action Dragonball movie; he turned it down to reprise the role of Hellboy
• The film was the first American production to shoot at Korda Studios in Hungary, then newly built outside Budapest
• The antagonist, Prince Nuada, bears a striking resemblence to the character Elric of Melnibone, created by fantasy writer Michael Moorcock
• Luke Goss, who plays Prince Nuada, also played the antagonist Nomak in Blade II, also directed by Del Torro

and get out your fake tail. At long last, Hellboy II opens this Friday. In case you’ve been living under a rock, here’s the trailer. You can bet your sweet bippy I’m going to be there this weekend.

Saw Indiana Jones etc… last Sunday. Harrison Ford was still excellent, and rose to the role of the aging adventurer as well as we could all expect. There were some high marks in the film, not the least of which were the motorcycle chase near the beginning, the escape from the nuclear testing site, and the gruesome killer ant sequence. But there were also some ‘oh brother’ moments, and some trademarkably bad Old Lucas dialogue (seriously George, hire someone to help you with these scripts!). Most obnoxious, though, was the clear departure from the franchise’s supernatural escapades to something more hackneyed and science fictiony than even I could stomach. Worse yet, not only was the climax reminiscent of AI, it was also practically a clone of the finale of The Last Crusade.

It was a fun movie, and I’m not disappointed I saw it, but it in no way approached the greatness of the original Indiana Jones films. Raiders and Crusade, like the original Star Wars trilogy, will long outlive and outshine any attempts to extend the saga. Now we just have to wait 20-30 years and see if some young hotshot decides he’s going to attempt to revive the character in his own vision. Hooray.

10 recently watched films (in no particular order):

1. I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead (DVD)
2. Persepolis (Theater)
3. Sunshine (DVD)
4. Vantage Point (Theater)
5. Transamerica (DVD)
6. Saved! (DVD)
7. Stay (DVD)
8. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (DVD)
9. Once (DVD)
10. Walk the Line (DVD)

Of those, 5 I would recommend to acquaintances:

1. Persepolis
2. Transamerica
3. Saved!
4. Perfume
5. Once

5 Band Names I Would Use if I Were an Indie Rocker:

1. Yoda’s Lawyers
2. The Triceratops Connection
3. No Drummer No Cry
4. Roving Band of Badgers
5. In Case of Fire Escape

(and Mark’s very funny comments earlier)

Here’s an interesting essay on “Return of the Jedi,” courtesy of ReverseShot.com.

Well, someone’s gotta do it I suppose.

10 Reasons “Return of the Jedi” DOES NOT SUCK! (in no particular order):

1. Luke Skywalker - From whiny bitch to bad-ass in one move
2. Jabba’s palace and the Rancor
3. Leia as Boushh
4. Speeder Bikes
5. “And now young Skywalker, you will die!”
6. A fully functional Death Star
7. Best space dog fight ever
8. The Final Duel
9. the whole Sand Barge scene
10. C-3P0 as Demi-God

The #1 reason people love to hate “Return of the Jedi”:

1. Ewoks

Five Albums You Should Check Out Right Now:

1. Black Mountain, “In the Future”
2. The Avett Brothers, “Emotionalism”
3. Plants and Animals, “Parc Avenue”
4. British Sea Power, “Do You Like Rock Music”
5. Okkervil River,”The Stage Names”

Six Random Annoyances:

1. Fire trucks emitting huge black clouds of exhaust - kinda ironic, yes?
2. People refusing to merge on the highway properly
3. Car dealerships co-branding the expensive car you bought with their name in the form of a decal
4. The expense and trouble of replacing a crappy neighbor’s rotten fence
5. The cost of gas while Exxon posts record-breaking profits, proving it really has very little to do with the Middle East, but all sorts to do with the large corporations killing the spirit of this country
6. The rampant cross-marketing of movies (ie, “Jumper” and “Horton Hears a Who”) that inundates you with said movie sooo much that by the time it comes out you’d rather shove a Q-Tip really, really far down your ear than actually see the film

Three Things to Be Really Happy About:

1. Spring Ahead!!
2. More people purchasing Hybrids
3. Emusic.com

I just got a phone call from M., telling me she had heard Heath Ledger had died. Surprised, I immediately turned to Google, where, refreshing my browser I can see every newspaper/media outlet around the world filing the same story every few minutes. This one, by the New York Times, seems to be the most current, as it has expanded since the last time I looked at it.

Apparently, Mr. Ledger, age 28, was found dead in his Manhattan apartment at approximate 3:30 PM today. He had an appointment for a massage, and his housekeeper went to find him when the masseuse arrived. Allegedly, pills were found near his unconscious body. Police do not suspect foul play at this time.

As silly as this sounds, I find this personally quite upsetting. Mr. Ledger, the same age as myself, seemed to be poised to become a great actor. Yes, he had some less than stellar films come out (by way of paying his dues), but based on his performance in Brokeback Mountain, and on the potential performance we were all looking forward to in “The Dark Knight” it seemed like he was destined for great work in film. But more than that (and I realize this sounds quite silly coming from someone who didn’t know him from Adam) he seemed to have his shit together during a period in which so many young celebrities and stars come across as mere shallow vessels- he seemed to have some integrity, and a genuine skill in his chosen craft. As horrible as it may sound, when things like this happen, you can’t help but wonder why it couldn’t have been one of the Britneys/Pete Dohertys/Dick Cheney’s of the world– someone who was either asking for it repeatedly, or had it coming by way of karma.

As macabre as it may sound, it will be interesting to see in the next few days what the hell happened. You can’t help but feel sad for his young daughter, who is something like two years old right now.

Although that probably would’ve made for a much more interesting movie. “I pity the foo who ain’t clean-shaven!”
Nice.

We finally went and saw it on Sunday, and while it was a good movie, it was decidedly not a great movie. It could have easily been enjoyed as a rental, and then, at least, I wouldn’t have had to deal with random Spanish from behind me during the entire film. I knew there was a good reason we had the couch shoved up against the wall– let’s see you try and squeeze back there, inconsiderate movie-goers!

Is it just me, or does Tim Burton just not care about making movies anymore? I mean, for crying out loud….try casting someone else already. I like Johnny Depp as much as the next person, but I’m getting awfully tired of him. Likewise, with Helena Bonham Carter… it would be nice to see her in a movie not directed by her husband for a change.

So, as I was saying. Good film, well acted, very atmospheric, the singing was pretty good, and the visuals (aside from the gore) were kinda cool. You really felt immersed in the doom and gloom of Old London. The problem, I think, was that this was really a movie made for two groups of people: Drama Geeks and Hot Topic Goths. I can’t really see anyone outside of those categories getting super excited about Sweeney Todd. It was a straight-up musical built around the framework of a Shakespearean tragedy. Need I say more? Even Alan Rickman was kinda boring in this movie. He was a bad guy, plain and simple- no dimension, no complexity. Just a psychotic ass. Makes Severus Snape seem downright Dickensian.

So, a measly three stars for Sweeney Todd. Put it somewhere on your Netflix que and spend your hard-earned money on I Am Legend or No Country for Old Men instead.

In what has to be one of the most anti-climactic press releases I’ve ever read, Marvel Comics announced the official name of the 2009 movie focusing on Wolverine will be…

wait for it….

“X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”

Wow.
Color me underwhelmed.

Hugh Jackman will once again be donning the ultimate mutton chops (not to mention the adamantium claws) of the short, dark and furry one. Perhaps even more interesting David Benioff thus far has screenplay credit. You might know him from his work on Troy… or, more likely, you might not know him from his work on Troy. He’s also apparently the writer for the forthcoming screen adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel “The Kite Runner.”

Directing is Gavid Hood, who previously directed something called Tsotsi, in addition to Rendition (in theaters now!) which actually looks like it might be good. My theory (on Rendition): if it has Jake Gyllenhaal, it can’t be too bad….right?