It’s episode #129 of Scattercast … and I’m finally back “on the air” post CES!
CES in Las Vegas was nuts … so nuts that I missed two episodes of Scattercast. Sorry folks.
Here tales of bloggers!
Thrill to tails of broken Wi-Fi!
Gasp a stories of Sean eating food in Vegas!
You will be shocked and amazed by this episode of Scattercast! (or not … your mileage may vary)
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The Dark Knight Rises, the third in Christopher Nolan’s Batman film series, has received its villains.
Warner Brothers announced today that Anne Hathaway (The Devil Wears Prada, Love and Other Drugs) has been cast as Selina Kyle. While the press release only mentions the name of “Selina Kyle”, pretty much anyone with a passing knowledge of Batman lore will know that this is the alter ego of Catwoman. However, with Mr. Nolan it has become rather obvious you can’t just assume you know what he’s doing, so until we hear otherwise, we can’t automatically assume she will also be donning the cat suit.
What was confirmed was that Tom Hardy (Inception), who was announced some time back as a villain in the film, has been confirmed to be playing Bane. This villain is a little less known, but did appear in the dreadful Batman & Robin film. The story goes that Bane is a convict who gets a hold of a drug known as “Venom”, and that when it is introduced into his system it increases his muscles to astronomical levels. Seeing as Nolan has kept this series somewhat based in reality, it will be interesting to see what he does with his interpretation.
Here is the full press release:
BURBANK, CA, January 19, 2011 – Warner Bros. Pictures announced today that Anne Hathaway has been cast as Selina Kyle in Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight Rises.” She will be starring alongside Christian Bale, who returns in the title role of Bruce Wayne/Batman.
Christopher Nolan stated, “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Anne Hathaway, who will be a fantastic addition to our ensemble as we complete our story.”
In addition, Tom Hardy has been set to play Bane. Nolan said, “I am delighted to be working with Tom again and excited to watch him bring to life our new interpretation of one of Batman’s most formidable enemies.”
Nolan will direct the film from a screenplay he wrote with Jonathan Nolan, from a story by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer. Nolan will also produce the film with his longtime producing partner, Emma Thomas, and Charles Roven.
“The Dark Knight Rises” is slated for release on July 20, 2012. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.
While I’ve given up pretty much all hope for X-Men: First Class to actually be true to the comics, I’ve decided to just enjoy the ride. Thus far the only images to appear online have been unofficial photos taken at a great distance from the subject matter. Yesterday an image appeared on MSN that was quickly taken down at the request of the studio. We’re not sure if it was just put up too early, or if it doesn’t represent the final look of the film, but it is interesting none the less.
(UPDATED: Click for larger, higher resolution image)
According to Dark Horizons, the cast seen in this picture includes:
Michael Fassbender as Magneto
Rose Byrne as Moira MacTaggert
January Jones as Emma Frost (aka the White Queen)
Jason Flemyng as Azazel (aka Nightcrawler’s father)
Nicholas Hoult as the Beast
Lucas Till as Havoc
Zoe Kravitz as Angel Salvadore
Jennifer Lawrence as Raven Darkholme (aka Mystique)
James McAvoy as Charles Xavier
Since this picture was ordered taken down by MSN, there’s no telling if things in this picture will change before they get up on the big screen, but my bet is that this is pretty close to final.
I’m not sure this line-up of team members could be more wrong if they tried, but it should still make for an interesting movie, and a potentially entertaining good time for all.
Every so often a company comes along with a new drink size that sends scientists into a fit about how it is more than the stomach can hold, and how people are fighting the battle of the waistline and on and on and on.
Okay, we get it. Can we just move on now? We know that Starbuck’s new Trenta (31 oz. cold drink size compared to the Venti’s 24 oz.) is over the top, but you know what? Who cares.
The National Post compiled the following image that shows the various drink sizes in comparison to the size of the average human stomach size. Yes, it’s bigger than your stomach … your point? (click image for a larger view)
This is a cold drink cup only, they expect people to sip on this for hours. It isn’t like a hot drink that you want to finish it before it goes cold, and I highly doubt anyone is going to drink this rapidly enough that there won’t be a couple bathroom breaks involved.
As with anything, Starbucks wouldn’t be making this size if there wasn’t a demand for it, and it is up to each person if they choose to order it. How about we just allow each person to make this choice for themselves if they buy it. I know, that’s just crazy talk any more letting people make decisions for themselves.
The Golden Globe winners for 2010 have been announce.
The Golden Globes is one of the few awards that acknowledges excellence in both television and film, and tends to be more relaxed than the Academy Awards. However, even in the relaxed attitude, the awards are considered a precursor to some of the things we will see from the Oscars.
Here is the full list of winners for the 2011 Golden Globes, and feel free to refresh yourself on the full list of nominees.
MOTION PICTURES
Picture, Drama: “The Social Network.”
Picture, Musical or Comedy: “The Kids Are All Right.”
Actor, Drama: Colin Firth, “The King’s Speech.”
Actress, Drama: Natalie Portman, “Black Swan.”
Director: David Fincher, “The Social Network.”
Actress, Musical or Comedy: Annette Bening, “The Kids Are All Right.”
Actor, Musical or Comedy: Paul Giamatti, “Barney’s Version.”
Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, “The Fighter.”
Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo, “The Fighter.”
Foreign Language: “In a Better World.”
Animated Film: “Toy Story 3.”
Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin, “The Social Network.”
Original Score: “The Social Network.”
Original Song: “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me,” (written by Diane Warren), “Burlesque.”
TELEVISION
Series, Drama: “Boardwalk Empire,” HBO.
Actor, Drama: Steve Buscemi, “Boardwalk Empire.”
Actress, Drama: Katey Sagal, “Sons of Anarchy.”
Series, Musical or Comedy: “Glee,” Fox.
Actor, Musical or Comedy: Jim Parsons, “The Big Bang Theory.”
Actress, Musical or Comedy: Laura Linney, “The Big C.”
Miniseries or Movie: “Carlos,” Sundance Channel.
Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Claire Danes, “Temple Grandin.”
Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Al Pacino, “You Don’t Know Jack.”
Supporting Actress, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Jane Lynch, “Glee.”
Supporting Actor, Series, Miniseries or Movie: Chris Colfer, “Glee.”
PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED
Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award: Robert De Niro.
The Green Lantern movie trailer gave us some definite hints to how much more alien the film would look to the comic from the costume and the power battery, but even the alien Corps members are looking … well … more alien.
More and more toy pictures are leaking out, but here are some that really made me stop.
The Toys R’ Us Early Bird preview figure of Hal Jordan/Green Lantern really amps up the alien aspects of the costume and ring. Still not sure how I’m thrilling to this design choice.
Tomar-Re has always been one of my favorite Green Lanterns, and I’m thrilled he’s in the movie, but … huh? I can understand going a bit more alien, but did they have to make him look this much like a chicken?
I’m still excited for this movie, but man some of these design choices are scaring me.
I can’t say I’m surprised, but the Alien prequel to be directed by Ridley Scott has had the plug pulled on it.
Talk of a ballooning budget, arguments over who the lead actors should be, a possible delay of a year and more were all leading to this looking to be a doomed project. According to The Hollywood Reporter, 20th Century Fox finally pulled the plug, but there is a consolation prize in all of this for director Scott.
According to the same report, what was to be the Alien script is now being retooled for a totally original piece called Prometheus, with the same script writers in place, and Mr. Scott will even get the actress he was fighting so hard for, Noomi Rapace. If her name sounds vaguely familiar, it’s because she played Lisbeth Salander in the foreign language version of The Millennium Trilogy. (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo/The Girl Who Played With Fire/The Girl Who Kicked The Hornets Nest) She is also starring in the upcoming Sherlock Holmes 2, and has become a very in-demand actor as of late.
As for his take on things, Mr. Scott issued the following statement:
While Alien was indeed the jumping off point for this project, out of the creative process evolved a new, grand mythology and universe in which this original story takes place. The keen fan will recognize strands of Alien‘s DNA, so to speak, but the ideas tackled in this film are unique, large and provocative. I couldn’t be more pleased to have found the singular tale I’d been searching for, and finally return to this genre that’s so close to my heart.
I had mixed feelings about Alien prequel, so I’m both happy and sad to see it go, but excited to see Ridley Scott once again jump into the sci-fi genre. The man gave us Alien and Blade Runner for crying out loud, he needs to do more sci-fi!
And in case you doubt this project, Fox has gone so far as to already announce a March 9, 2012 release.
The first official image of Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man has been released, and it actually doesn’t fill me with dread for this reboot of the film series.
While I’m still not thrilled we’re starting the series over, Garfield looks fine as Peter Parker, and while the costume does have some modifications (the red of the gloves creeping up his arm, hip pads), it doesn’t look horrible. Obviously he’s just been in a fight, so you can’t judge the darker areas of the costume, or the messed up emblem on his chest.
Here’s the image, click for a larger view.
We’ll see when this hits theaters if it was worth rebooting the whole thing over again.
I’m finally back home from Las Vegas where I was attending CES, and it just wouldn’t be a trip out of town for me if I didn’t discuss the city in general.
All told I ended up in the rooms of two casinos, and spent time in a total of six different ones. The differences were stark to say the least.
The Bellagio – This place is just massive, but overall it had the nicest casino area of any of the ones I visited. It seemed the least set up to confuse you, and you could easily make your way through it without having to hunt for a path not littered with slot machines. What did surprise me, however, was the one room I visited, while generous in size, and with a bathroom larger than some hotel rooms, was the frayed carpet. I know rooms get a lot of use, but you would think in a hotel with the reputation of this one they would pay more attention to the finer details.
Ceaser’s Palace – “Desolate.” That was the word that came to mind when I was there. I only walked through to go to dinner at Mesa Grill – which was much better than I expected – but it just seemed very … empty. Considering the 140,000 or more people in town for CES, that can’t be a good sign.
Harrahs – Old school Vegas runs in the veins of this place, but it isn’t as bad as the Hilton …
The Las Vegas Hilton – As I walked through the Hilton one evening with Jonathan Rettinger of TechnoBuffalo, I turned and asked him if he also felt like Rodert DeNiro was going to walk through at any moment as his character from Casino. This place is old school, and it feels it. I also spent a brief amount of time in two rooms for meetings, and found the smell to be that stale.musty smell you associate with aging motels, and the furntirue very warn.
This also used to be the home of Star Trek: The Experience. When you remove an attraction like that, I also find it helpful to remove the added architectural designs, otherwise you have Star Trek-style doors leading to a wine bar.
The Paris – Cute, and no where as large a casino floor as the others, but it felt a bit too much like Epcot Center had been dropped into the Las Vegas strip. The small Parisian village theme is carried out everywhere, and it’s easy to forget you are in a casino and not a theme park.
The Venetian – Again, a bit too Disney-fied in some sections such as St. Mark’s Square, but the food was fabulous at the two locations I ate at: F1rst and Otto’s. The casino is huge, and it’s easy to lose your sense of direction in, but overall it was probably my favorite of all the ones I visited. Still doubt I would have stayed there, however.
I did very little gambling where there as I was there for work, but I know I made the right choice staying at a Residence Inn so I at least had a decent room, free breakfast and so on. Oh yeah, and it felt normal.
At long last the 23rd James Bond film has a release date, and it has been officially announced that Daniel Craig will be back for his third time as the agent with a license to kill. Writers Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, who worked on Quantum of Solace, return for this outing with the addition of Hugo Cabret writer John Logan.
While I didn’t thrill to Quantum of Solace as much as I would have liked to, I think a lot of it had to do with just how good Casino Royale was. Hopefully they’ll get a stronger script this time, and we’ll finally see if Craig is going to become the best of the Bonds. (my money is on “yes”)
It’s episode #129 of Scattercast … and I’m finally back “on the air” post CES!
The Dark Knight Rises, the third in Christopher Nolan’s Batman film series, has received its villains.
The Golden Globe winners for 2010 have been announce.
A total of 54 published again this week. CES was still kicking my ass.
I can’t say I’m surprised, but the Alien prequel to be directed by Ridley Scott has had the plug pulled on it.
I’m finally back home from Las Vegas where I was attending CES, and it just wouldn’t be a trip out of town for me if I didn’t discuss the city in general.
Nov. 9, 2012.
