Note: The movie’s been out for nearly a month now, so I’m not going to bother worrying about spoilers. If you haven’t seen the movie, don’t click on the jump. You’ve been warned. –PG
G.I. Joe: Retraction
...body massage? Anyone?
In what has to be one of the strangest movie-related moves I can remember, Paramount has decided to push back G.I. Joe: Retaliation nearly a full year, to March 2013. The press release claims the delay is because Paramount suddenly, at nearly the literal last frigging minute, decided to redo the movie in 3D.
As Rob notes at TR, 3D does really well in foreign countries, so it’s just possible Paramount and/or Hasbro decided they could make even more money with the much-maligned post-production 3D conversion. (And for what it’s worth, the Rock’s claiming new scenes will be “designed” to take advantage of 3D.)
One thing’s for certain: very few people are buying the argument that this is being done solely to turn the movie into 3D. The studio had plenty of opportunities to make that decision and evidently passed every time – at least until Battleship sank (which anyone could have seen coming a mile away).* (more…)
The Rock as Roadblock (Roadrock?)
I’m not that much of a G.I. Joe fan, but I respect it as one of the great 1980s toy properties. The first movie was terrible, but I’ve been watching the development of the second film with cautious optimism. Most fans dismissed it the second the director of the Justin Bieber movie was chosen, but that awoke some contrarian sense in me that suggested two wrongs just might make a right. More specifically, Jon M. Chu, as a novice director, might be more willing to respect the franchise’s history than try to create his own vision of the concept.
But I digress. When I found out the Rock would be in the G.I. Joe sequel as Roadblock, my optimism went up a bit more. I’ve never been a wrestling fan, but I love the Rock–mostly on the strength of his performance in The Rundown (one of my favorite movies), but also his general personality. He’s fun to watch.* And man, is he psyched to be in G.I. Joe.
The above pic was posted on Johnson’s Twitter account, showing him in full Roadblock costume. I have absolutely no legitimate reason to be optimistic about this film, and yet…there is a precedent. Star Trek: The Motion Picture turned off Star Trek fans with its incredibly slow pace, awkward dialogue, odd characterization of the main cast, and the forced addition of new characters. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan kicked ass by going back to what made the original show great–action, suspense, great dialogue and character interaction, and a focus on the main characters. It respected the franchise.
I think G.I. Joe: Retaliation just might pull off the same trick. But…I’ve been wrong before.
For more on the Rock’s importance to the new film, check out Poe Power Pal GeneralsJoes‘s post, G.I. Joe: Retaliation influenced by “The Rock’s” positive impact.
*At one point there was a plan to make a buddy cop flick called Blowback starring the Rock and Ryan Reynolds. I’m sad it never got made. Very sad.
Odds ‘n Ends > July 26, 2011
- Saw Captain America with Dr. Mrs. Ghostal and Red Kryptonite this past weekend. I enjoyed it–more than Thor, and probably more than any Marvel flick since X-Men 2. We knew Joe Johnston could direct period pieces, and this was sort of a sideways sequel to The Rocketeer anyway. Chris Evans was great, Tommy Lee Jones did a great job being Tommy Lee Jones, and the Red Skull was Red Hulk to Jim Carrey’s The Mask. (I did find the Red Skull make-up a bit too cartoony, but I realize that–as well as the German-accented English among the foreign bad guys–was done to make the film accessible to kids, and that’s fine.) Did I think it was better than Batman Begins or The Dark Knight? No, but it was unquestionably more fun than those movies, and a nice set-up for The Avengers.
- Speaking of Nick Fury & the Avengers, this spoof is cute. Love the slow clap.
- As you may know, Mattel is bringing the DC Retro Action line to a close soon. Some fans have a petition up to save it. I wish ’em luck!
- I received an email from a company called Geek Design, who create high-end furniture for storing and displaying collectibles.
- Looks like I’ll be attending NYCC this year. I keep hoping more of SDCC’s hype will spill over into NYCC as SDCC becomes more crowded; maybe that will start this year, with the show moving back to October. The Tuesday after the show, incidentally, is the release date for Batman: Arkham City, the Arkham City trade paperback, and the Blu-Ray of Batman: Year One. Busy day for Bats.
- In case you missed it, there were a couple small MOTUC news bits out of SDCC. First off, the Wind Raider will have real box art, painted by the same artist who did it thirty years ago.
- Also, here are all the new bios that were revealed. Battleground Evil-Lyn’s is a doozy; Demo-Man’s disappointingly contains nothing about Demo-Man himself, nor explains what happened when Keldor merged with him (i.e., did any of Demo-Man’s mind merge as well, etc.).
- Finally, it looks like there very well may be an exclusive at PowerCon: a pedestal for King Grayskull’s Orb of Sparkle Crest Toothpaste. The PowerCon part is speculation but seems likely.
The Ballad of G.I. Joe
I’ve resisted the urge to post every mildly amusing geek-related video I come across–and I’m sure 99% of you have already seen this–but it was too amazing not to post. That’s one hell of a cast.
G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra hits theaters
Use this post’s comment to discuss anything about the movie that doesn’t involve spoilers. If you want to discuss spoilers, please use this thread on the PGPoA forum.
Show and Tell > Thud Butt (Hook)
Wow. Today’s Show and Tell is a doctoral dissertation on the action figure of Thud Butt from Hook. It’s written by Ben Leach, vintage toy enthusiast and frequent contributor to ToyFare magazine. It’s fair to say you have never loved a toy as much as Ben loves Thud Butt. Not ever.
So prepare to learn more than you ever thought possible about…Thud Butt.
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One of these days, hopefully sooner than later, something is going to happen to make me realize there’s so much more to life than nostalgia and action figures.Today is not that day.
When I was a wee lad of 8 years of age, a movie came out that got me very excited. It combined action, adventure, comedy, mermaids, the ability to fly, prostitutes playing fairies, a short guy playing a tall guy, and a girl with freaky-ass caterpillar eyebrows.
It was called Hook.’ Actually, it is still called Hook.’Hook’ is one of those movies where I was so glad I saw it as a kid. I know most adults who lack the power of IMAGINATION view the movie as screwing up a classic fairy tale. But when you’re a kid, you just think it’s so cool to see Peter Pan realize who he is to venture back to Neverland to save his children. Kids in the film were beating up on pirates with the aid of marbles, chickens, mirrors, and an expensive but essentially useless raft that served as five seconds of eye candy. Plus, I was too young to get annoyed with Robin Williams’ whole shtick. Look at the funny man who makes funny faces and slight variations on one funny voice!
As my sister and I have watched and rewatched Hook’ year after year around Christmastime, we’ve become aware just how important this film was not only for us, but a host of somewhat famous personalities who put their careers on the line just to say a couple of lines in a big-time Steven Spielberg movie.
My sister and I have also developed a deep appreciation of one of the greatest characters of cinematic history. Even though he was a secondary character, he possessed a commanding presence every time he was on screen. And when Peter Pan leaves Neverland, he puts this character in charge, acknowledging the character’s obvious leadership skills.
I’m talking, of course, about Thud Butt.
It Figures #23
Poe’s note: Seriously, aside from its generally being a bad movie, Signs bugged the crap out of me. Someone in the alien invasion force did not do the due diligence in researching Earth’s environment.
Movie Review > Star Trek
I’m a second-generation Star Trek nerd. There exists a photo–I’ve got to ask my mom to dig it up, so I can scan it and post it here–of my dad and a bunch of his college friends in full classic Trek uniforms. This past Christmas, I gave him the Diamond Select replica communicator & phaser set, and I’m pretty sure I’ve never given him a gift he liked that much before. Ever.
Which explains why, in 1987, my dad was watching a new show called Star Trek: The Next Generation when his eight-year-old son wandered in. Catching sight of a man in a colorful uniform with some sort of strange robotic visor, who was in shock at the discovery of a frozen corpse, the son sat down and began a lifelong love affair with that which Gene Roddenberry had wrought. (more…)
This will undoubtedly be THE GREATEST MOVIE EVER.
MUCH thanks GeekTyrant for the tip.