The Rocketeer

Enter the Green Lantern Ironman Indiana Jones!

Continuing with superhero flicks that weren't so super, today we enter year 1991 to fasten our seatbelts in the universe of the graphic novel character The Rocketeer!  The film captures the original Dave Stevens comic book flavours: The spirit of 1930's aviation pulps and then some.

The movie captured the spirit of the comics beautifully. Sure it was disappointing that Doc Savage couldn't be included (scroll down to trivia if you don't know who he is), but Howard Hughes made a sensible substitution. I was a bit annoyed that Disney felt they had to change Betty into Jenny, but with Jennifer Connelly in the role, I was in a forgiving mood. The film was full of action and humor, cliffhangers and character; just like Stevens' creation. If there was anything to criticize, it was the toning down of Betty/Jenny. Yeah, I know, this is Disney, and she was far tamer in the comics than the real Betty/Bettie Page; but, hey, a guy can hope.

The Rocketeer and his Betty Page.

Better than Fast & Furious nitro!

Bill Campbell was perfect for Cliff Secord. He had that All-American look, with an impish twinkle in his eye. Watching the movie, you could see the excitement when he was flying, and that he was head over heels in love with Jenny.

Alan Arkin made a great Peevy, although he was far less cantankerous than his print counterpart (incidentally, Peevy was based on Doug Wildey, creator of Jonny Quest, god I'm old!). He was more of a Connecticut Yankee than grouchy mechanic.

Timothy Dalton made a great pseudo-Errol Flynn. I wasn't too happy that they trotted out that Flynn-as-Nazi Spy nonsense; but, it works beautifully for the story. Paul Sorvino made a great 30's mobster, too. Add Tiny Ron as Lothar, modeled after Rondo Hatton, and you have some pretty fun villains.

Then, there's Jennifer Connelly, one of the most beautiful and talented actresses in Hollywood. As I said, I had hoped for a little sexier character; but, the compromise was still pretty good. Connelly brought both a wholesomeness and sex appeal to the role. She looked great in the period clothing, too.

"In brightest day, in darkest night...sorry! wrong hero!"

"To infinity and beyond"

Everything about this film worked. The period detail was first rate, from the costumes, to he set design, to the slang. The only thing that would have improved this would have been to make more films. This is a great film for the whole family and captures the spirit of Republic and the pulps as well as Indiana Jones did. 

The Rocketeer trivia

1. Disney had a special mechanism built especially for this film. Called the "Shaky-cam", it was designed to be the exact opposite of the "Steady-cam", that is, to introduce vibrations into the picture. This was used in the scenes filmed inside the Zeppelin to give the impression of the power of the engines. When the movie went to video, the effect didn't transfer too well, and was therefore steadied.  

2. Stunt man Jimmy Medearis suffered serious head injuries during a failed stunt. He and fellow stunt man Michael J. Sarna both hit a tree when a truck pulling their harness-rig drove too far. 

3. Johnny Depp was nearly cast as Cliff Secord/The Rocketeer.  

Jennifer "Boobs"

With such a gal I sure can fire rockets to the sky.

4. Billy Campbell, who once studied commercial art, made sure to read the Dave Stevens graphic novel on which this film was based. He got the part after getting a haircut to make himself look identical to the character in the graphic novel. 

5. The original inventor of the rocket pack was thirties pulp novel hero Doc Savage, the Man of Bronze, in the original graphic comic book by Dave Stevens. However, because licensing considerations, Disney did not seek permission from Conde Nast, the copyright holder of Doc Savage, and opted to substitute Doc Savage with the flamboyant billionaire Howard Hughes.  

6. Originally was supposed to be preceded in theaters by a Roger Rabbit cartoon called "Hare in my Soup", unfortunately the cartoon was never made. 

7. In the original graphic novel, Cliff Secord's girlfriend is called Betty Page, not Jenny Blake. Dave Stevens (the creator of the comic novel) based the character "Betty Page" upon his real-life friend, 50's pin-up girl Bettie Page.  

8.  The film had its own videogame adaptation for the Super Nintendo SNES console. However, it wasn't a hit amongst gamers. 

The original SNES artwork for the videogame box.

16 bits entertainment. Respect!

Overall, a very entertaining film that portrays 1930's pulp in a rated for all audiences version. Perhaps, its main flaw is that it is an old fashioned Disney studios movie, so I'm just guessing here but, it won't satisfy those who are expecting to find a darker mood type of superhero movie with a more serious approach  a la Nolan.  Since the film wasn't a big hit in theaters it immediately became a family classic in the rental stores (by the way, R.I.P. Blockbuster video) Anyways, an easy to follow entertaining film that could help you make a rainy weekend a better one. 

Here's the cool movie trailer:

Wreck it Ralph!

Arcade nostalgia has never looked better.

The trailer alone, garnered much buzz for Disney's latest 3D adventure. Seeing some of'the great video game villains of all time assembled in one room was just too good to be true. The hype was elevated to even greater heights given its ubiquitous presence at San Diego Comic Con. In the back of mind I kept thinking, "THEY'RE GONNA WRECK IT!"

Thankfully, the movie succeeds in creating a heartfelt tribute to the golden era of the 80's arcade, decorated here and there with familiar cameos that are both nostalgic and laugh out loud hilarious. The actual video game characters and their respective worlds don't play as big a role in the movie as I imagined. My wishful, nerdy brain hoped Ralph would be jumping through pipes in Mushroom Kingdom, riding horseback through Hyrule and blasting away at baddies alongside Mega Man and who knows who else. This didn't happen, and may have to do with the price of buying the rights to some of these iconic images. But the new world Disney Animation Studios created is rich with surprises, and rivals that of Monstropolis, Toy Story, and the Kingdom of Far and Far Away. 

Fix it Jerry Jr.

We all want to be the hero.

Wreck-It Ralph (voiced by the incomparable John C. Reilly) is the Donkey Kong to Fix-It Felix, Jr.'s Mario in a fictional 80's arcade game. The game itself is believable enough to have existed during the era. Ralph, along with other villains in various games throughout the ages, share the same plight of feeling under-appreciated by gamers and other citizens of the video game world.

The breaking point for Ralph was the 30th Anniversary for the "Fix-it Felix, Jr." arcade. To commemorate the event, Felix throws a party in the penthouse of the game's high-rise apartment complex, a party that Ralph wasn't invited to. (The DJ of this party offered another cameo I really wasn't expecting and left me in awe of this tribute to electronic art.) 

Bad guys theraphy.

What sets Ralph apart from all the other villains is that he is determined to actually do something about the unfortunate role of "Bad Guy" he was programmed to assume. He intends to jump to different arcades in order to become a hero in another game. This act of invading a game other than your own is mysteriously referred to as "Going Turbo" by the other inhabitants of the video game world. It's considered taboo, especially since it runs the risk of permanent death: dying outside your own game makes it impossible to regenerate.

After a series of unfortunate events, Ralph eventually crash lands into Sugar Rush, a cross between the worlds of Candy Land and Mario Kart. There he befriends the adorable Vanellope (voiced by the lovely Sarah Silverman), who like Ralph is seen as an outcast in her game. In her case, she is considered a freak due to her tendency to glitch out. To Vanellope, racing runs deep within her code, but the only thing stopping her is the candy land's ruler the Candy King, who is adamant on keeping her out of the race.

Those were the days.

Old school gaming.

Ralph's spontaneous hero's journey spells trouble for the rest of the video game world. Due to Ralph's disappearance, the "Fix-it Felix, Jr." game is in danger of being unplugged, leaving Felix with the hefty responsibility of retrieving his clumsy counterpart. Ralph's brief stint in a Halo-esque game called "Hero's Duty" is also a big nuisance to the foxy Sgt. Calhoun (Jane Lynch). She must now track down and exterminate a Cybug that Ralph mistakenly helped escape from the game. If the bug goes viral, it could destroy every game in Mr. Litwak's entire arcade for good.

The video game setting offers awesome moments of creativity for the Disney animators, from the way the characters are drawn and animated, to the way their lives are portrayed outside of their own game. The voice talent is also really impressive across the board. While the movie isn't the all-out Smash Brothers brawl many were expecting, the movie comes with loads of surprises that are sure to delight and entertain a wide audience, gamers and non-gamers alike.

How about a bukkake party Chun Li?

Q Bert!

The movie could not have come at a better time. People who grew up during the era of the arcade are now starting to have families of their own, and are very likely to laugh along with the children they bring to the theaters. This same video game generation also witnessed the Disney Renaissance of the early 90's: The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and the Lion King. With Wreck-It Ralph destined to be an instant classic, following the success of the equally impressive Tangled, we are in for a new Disney Renaissance for a whole new generation.

Note: Get there early enough for an excellent animated short, and stay to watch the credits roll if you haven't yet satisfied your nerdy gamer fix. 

Here is the awesome movie trailer and, happy new year dudes!!!!!! 

The Incredibles

Old School superheroes with CGI powers.

I have never been a fan of the latest trends in movies that are aimed at the youngest audiences. In fact, when I was a kid, I never really bought any of the Disney stories that were being sold in those days. I was more impressed with  live action movies aimed at kids, like E.T. the Extraterrestrial, The Neverending Story, The Goonies and stuff like that. However I loved cartoons, shows like Robotech, Transformers, Silverhawks, Thundercats and others just made my day. But as my brother grew up I had to follow him to the movie theaters and/or Blockbusters to watch the latest in kids movies. So I got the chance of watching the rise of the latest Disney/Pixar CGI movies. I never liked a single one of them. There was only one big exception, which I believe it was an obvious exception cause the movie was not only aimed at children. Yes! I'm talking about the amazing Dreamworks saga of Shrek. He made my day, I even bought the Blu Ray box set featuring the 4 films, and I had a  blast as I still have when I decide it's time to revisit Shrek's legacy. So, after watching many films I didn't like, I met my way with another big exception: The Incredibles.

The movie has an undeniably cool retro feel to it and it shows not only in the design of the picture but also in the music, which definitely sounds like something out of a 60's 007 flick. It is also unusually dark, especially for a Pixar flick. I'm not saying it's dark where people are getting their heads delivered to someone in a box or family members are sleeping with each other or anything like that but there were moments where I found myself wondering if a little kid might be able to deal with the intensity of what was going on on screen. Maybe it was the fact that the heroes were in very real danger most of the time. The bad guys weren't out to catch them as much as they were out to kill them. When you discover who the film's villain is, you can literally feel his anger coming off the screen. I may be over-exaggerating a bit but then again, it really is to the film's credit that it deals with human emotions in the way that it does.

Old School comic book heroes are back!

It's not easy for a retired superhero to cope with regular people's life.

You're about to meet a family of superheroes.

Even though you are watching a film that is populated by CGI characters, the emotions they convey in what they say and do come across as purely believable. Whether watching Bob Parr interact with people at his job or just sitting at his desk was something that rang true to me, just in the feeling of it. Everything about this movie has a very concrete feel to it, even while looking like something you'd see in a comic book. The computer graphics in general were absolutely amazing and the voice acting is excellent across the board, so good in fact, that I really can't pick a favorite from the entire cast. I have to say that Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter were very good as Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl respectively. They had a moment near the end of the film that actually touched me but you can see that for yourselves. Samuel L. Jackson was hilarious and thankfully, he wasn't overused. Dash and Violet were realized so well that every time they came up on screen, I loved every minute of it. Dash, in particular was one of the funniest characters in the movie. Jason Lee made for a formidable villain as Syndrome. I loved the fact that he was your typical antagonist but was also aware of the conventions surrounding such a role, like when he chides himself for 'monologuing'. He was also one ruthless bastard, I'll give him that. Even the bit part characters were hilarious. There was a kid on a tricycle in this movie who comes out twice and made me laugh out loud both times. 

Ultimate heroes.

a former fan can be a real pain in the arse

With The Incredibles, not only are the main characters great, but every other character they run into makes some kind of impression on you. That's exactly how The Incredibles is such a kick. Every character that appears will make you laugh or intrigue you in some way. I have to admit that I was laughing myself throughout the entire movie, especially with the character of Edna Mode who almost steals the movie. Man, even the end credits are awesome! I have to give the director Brad Bird a big thumbs up for this one. He pulled it off and hopefully this will attract attention to his other animated film, "The Iron Giant", which was sadly overlooked when it was released and is also a really great film.

Yes, cosplay erotica is always there.

Incredible shaved twat.

All in all, I can't recommend this movie enough. I left very satisfied and felt no need to compare this to the rest of Pixar's movies. This one is just as good if not better than any other animated movie released to date and rightfully deserves its place among the best animated movies of all time. The Incredibles were re-released to home video last year in the wonderful  HD format of the Blu Ray disc. The transfer is amazing, if you wanna buy it, go now and buy the Blu Ray edition. I own the 2 Blu Ray 1 DVD edition which features all of the interesting extras that complete the experience to make it incredible. 

Here's the movie trailer:

Tron

CGI at its best.

Last night I decided to watch for the first time in years, a Disney movie that probably wasn't very much like the Disney traditional movie style...

In 1982, TRON was originally panned by critics, despite the fact that the film had very interesting references to look at a little deeper, but being a child watching it as a re-run on TV still my interest was aimed at enjoying the special effects and the 3D technology used in the movie, rather than trying to understand the plot, or at least a few lines of the story. You know, as a kid, I only cared about the good guys beating the bad guys and that was enough pleasure for me.

One of TRON's greatest achievements is a reference to a dual layer world, a sort of parallel reality where two worlds are about to collide. There is the world of the user, contrasted with the world of the programs. The users are like the owners of the programms, more accurately users are godlike characters and the programs are very much like our real world worshipping these gods.

3D is here to stay.

Wonderful worlds.

The obvious parallels are with the use of the same actor for each character's counterparts in the digital world (did that inspire portions from The Matrix Trilogy?). So the duality of the characters is Flynn and Clu, Alan and Tron, Laura and Yori, Gibbs and Dumont, Dillinger and Sark. Somehow I feel this movie inspired way more future sci-fi than we'd like to admit.

I find it surprising that many are critical of the 'unbelievable' aspect of this film. However, never is the audience expected to believe that this is the way the computer world really works or that a person could ever be zapped into a computer. In fact, to allude to the type of story that the audience is being presented with, TRON does a near-quote of Alice In Wonderland, with 'Stranger and stranger.' Perhaps Kevin Flynn fell down the rabbit hole…. And – for those who think TRON is a Disney film – watch the production notes and you'll discover that this is not a Disney film despite the logo and their fundings.

Of most obvious interest is the fact that TRON pushed the computer graphics technology of the time to its limits and beyond. And – despite many who have said that its graphics are primitive, they're confusing resolution with texture-mapping. The truth is, the number of colours displayed and the resolution shown in the computer-generated components in TRON is higher than most desktop displays – even today. To output to film with the level of sharpness and smooth gradients seen in TRON, you'd need at least 24 or 32-bit colour, with a horizontal resolution of approximately 3000 to 4000 pixels. On top of that, it was the first film to use transparency in 3D CGI (the solar-sailor simulation). To my knowledge, texture-mapping didn't exist in 1982. Fortunately, the lack of texture mapping works well with the stylized look of the film's 'world inside the machine.'

As a film, TRON is definitely both unique and entertaining. And, for those who are visual in nature, it's full of splendid eye-candy. The design work is top-rate, and is best appreciated when viewed on film.

Mr. Bad Guy.

Good guys.

The plot for TRON is actually quite simple. Despite this simplicity, it is cleverly used for the purpose of -- hopefully – making the audience think about our world, and how it may relate to some 'higher world.' If we are programs, then who are our users? Is there a level up from us, and do they know all the answers? There is certainly a metaphysical angle to TRON, which the audience can ether pay attention to, or disregard in favour of the simple thrill of watching Light Cycles square off against each other on the Game Grid.

Many elements are combined in this film: the gladiatorial film, the exodus, the revolution, the sentient AI, the battle of good vs. evil, and – of course – the almost prophetic depiction of the computer industry. Encom and Ed Dillinger are very much parallels to real themes that took place in the computer industry in the years that followed the release of TRON. These themes are very much repeated in more recent trilogy of films. I think the actual name for the Light Cycle game that Flynn mentions will give you a clue as to which trilogy I'm referring to.

Virtual fan.

Finally, there's Kevin Flynn. Some may be surprised that I left this one to the end. However, I thought I'd leave the best for last. Fact is, Jeff Bridges did a brilliant job with this character. He made the character believable. And, this carries over to the film itself.

TRON is a movie that really entertains. I like to think of it as a big small movie. One that was definitely ambitious and is presented in 'glossy' and vivid wide-screen, yet has a sort of nice-light-snack kind of feel to it. It's a movie with a great deal of replay value, and one with compelling characters. 

The official movie trailer here:





A reference from Family Guy:





And the breathtaking trailer for the forthcoming sequel Tron Legacy