It’s episode #162 and Scattercast is back from being sick as a dog!
Possibly the most rambling and random episode of Scattercast ever … enjoy!
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No matter what age you are, you more than likely are familiar with the Sesame Street character of Elmo. What you may not be so familiar with is the man behind the furry creation, Kevin Clash.
Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey is a documentary film about the journey Kevin Clash’s life has taken that got him to the moment that he is the person behind one of the most popular puppets ever created. The film has received critical acclaim at numerous film festivals and has generally been well received by audiences.
To be blunt, I had only head of this film in passing before today, and I honestly can’t remember if I had ever heard the name “Kevin Clash” before today, but with this brief trailer you see below, I am totally enamored. And I want to see this movie … desperately. Considering all of the negative things I generally write about films and television programs, it’s refreshing for once to say, “I need to see this as soon as humanly possible.”
And the interesting aspect is … I generally can’t stand Elmo. Ever since the great “Tickle Me Elmo” toy debacle back in the 90′s, I really couldn’t stand how this one character had essentially taken over the franchise that is Sesame Street. Now learning just even a slice of the backstory you get from the film, I have a very different take on Elmo, and a very big interest in learning more about Mr. Clash.
I dare you to watch this trailer and not immediately say, “I need to see this.”
The second season of The Walking Dead is almost upon us as it starts on Oct. 16th, and that means it’s time to start promoting the heck out of it.
If a lot of this footage feels familiar, you aren’t dreaming. A good chunk of this was shown in the San Diego Comic-Con reel from back in July, but this is the first time it’s being used as the trailer.
Having just read the latest trade paperback in the series, I am reminded again of why the comic is so much better than the book, and especially when it comes to the character of Andrea. The discussion she has in this trailer about how she chose to stay behind at the CDC for certain death? The comic Andrea would have never done that. And – spoiler, spoiler – she’s still alive in the book after 90 some issues. She is one of the few remaining original characters, so that should tell you something about her toughness.
As I always say, I’ll still tune in and watch this season, but every clip just makes me that much sadder for the truly great story all of you only watch the series are missing out on.
Well, here’s a new twist: Lets option the rights to a trailer and turn it into a movie.
Last February a trailer was released for an upcoming zombie game called Dead Island. The trailer very deftly got the point across that that the story would be about a zombie outbreak out a tropical resort, but between the reverse nature of the trailer’s story telling, the music and the imagery of the little girl, the trailer was a huge hit with non-gamers.
Almost immediately there was a war on for who could secure the rights to this story in the ultra-hot zombie genre. There was a lot of back and forth, but it was announced today that Lionsgate has picked up the option for the film.
Now, don’t get me wrong, this covers the whole game and not just the trailer, but obviously the story you see in the video below will play a major role in the film. As Joey Davidson speculated over at TechnoBuffalo, this could actually go on to become the best video game adaption ever, but of course that isn’t saying a whole lot considering the other entrants in the film genre.
Check out the trailer, and get ready for Dead Island – The Movie.
Despite predictions that The Lion King wouldn’t stay #1 this week, but apparently you can’t knock the king off his throne.
The power of Disney is a tough one to overcome, and while some analysts thought The Lion King couldn’t hold on to #1 for a second week, it did, bringing in a remarkable $22.1 million. For a 17-year-old film, you have to give it a hat tip for having that sort of draw.
Moneyball was presumed to knock it out of #1, and after it won Friday’s box office everyone presumed it would win the weekend. It brought in a decent $20.6 million, but it just didn’t have enough gas behind it to knock out a beloved Disney classic.
Coming in third was Dolphin Tale with $20.26 million, and there is some speculation it may actually take second when the final grosses are reported later today. I would imagine it would have done better without another family film out there, but I’m not sure anyone could have predicted this current weekend playing out the way it did.
Abduction was expected to do better than fourth seeing as it stars Taylor Lautner from the Twilight series, but it raked in only $11.2 million, well below its expectations. I think the majority of the actors from that series are in for a rude awakening as they try to find other work with the conclusion of that series. They weren’t the ones drawing folks in, and compared to the Harry Potter kids, they also don’t have the apparent talent to back it up.
Rounding out the top five was Killer Elite starring Jason Statham. This was the weakest opening yet for one of his films brining in only $9.5 million. Perhaps everyone is finally realizing he plays the exact same role in every film.
Last week’s new releases of Straw Dogs tumbled 59 percent to an embarrassingly weak $2.1 million in ninth place. Fairing even worse was the Sarah Jessica Parker vehicle, I Don’t Know How She Does It which fell 53 percent to 10th place with an anemic $2 million. Apparently Ms. Parker is really going to need to consider another Sex and the City at this point.
Next week will see the releases of 50/50, Courageous, Dream House and What’s Your Number?, which sounds like another week of lackluster debuts. I wouldn’t be surprised to see another repeat for The Lion King.
Conan the Barbarian? Down to 56 theaters and $20,800. Meanwhile, Bridesmaids, which hit home video this week, had 111 theaters still and did $78.800. I’m sorry … I love a train wreck.
Filming on The Dark Knight Rises continues in Los Angeles, and with that comes outdoor shooting that gives photographers a chance to catch shots of the actors in costume. And, yes, that includes full shots of Anne Hathaway in the Catwoman costume.
Although Warner Brothers released one official image of Anne Hathaway in the Catwoman costume, the fact that she was riding the Batpod (I die a little every time I write that name) concealed the majority of it. The new shots obtained by JustJared, Splash News Online and Celebrity-Gossip show a very 1960′s Batman television series inspired outfit, somewhat reminiscent of the one worn by Eartha Kitt in the series. It isn’t campy mind you, just skin tight and very much a catsuit. Director Christopher Nolan is known to try to cement these films in reality, but I think he may have gone slightly off target with this one.
Oh, and countdown to this being a top Halloween costume in 2012 begins now.
Oh yes, those heels are sensible when fighting crime or being a burglar. As for the “cat ears” on her head, reportedly that is the googles we’ve seen her wearing in other shots, and when pushed up they give the impression of ears.
I take it this picture is from between takes.
More pictures after the jump.
A total of 22 this week. (this is what happens when you get sick)
At long last, Johnny Depp’s dream project of a Dark Shadows movie is becoming a reality, and of course he brought Tim Burton along for the ride.
For those unfamiliar with the property, Dark Shadows was a gothic soap opera that ran on ABC from 1966 to 1971. It centered around the mysterious Collins family and included all sorts of mysterious overtones and, oh yeah, a vampire. Over the course of its run it built a huge cult following that lasts to this day, and counts amongst its number Johnny Depp and Tim Burton.
This is a project that has circulated around Depp for years, but due to the fairly niche audience it would go for, no one was really willing to fund it. However, when your name is “Depp,” and you’ve stared in nearly half of the highest grossing films of all time, apparently people will take a gamble on you finally. Add in the fact that he wanted to play the lead of Barnabas Collins – yes, the vampire – and you can understand why someone finally coughed up the budget for this.
A cast photo has been released for the new film that you can see below which seems to have been in reaction to some leaked set photos that showed Depp wearing heavy amounts of make-up that made him look nothing like the original character. Now we’re left to wonder what was up with those images because in this photo he looks dead-on with the original series. (click the image for a slightly larger view)
And here is a cast photo from the television series.
For those who care to learn more about the production, you can read the initial filming press release after the break. In the meantime, judging by this picture, Tim Burton has gathered up the usual suspects for his films with a few new additions. (Oh yeah! Chloe Moretz from Kick-Ass! Woo!) How this will play with audiences, who knows, but Burton & Depp have yet to let me down when they team up.
After 41 years, and 10,712 episodes, All My Children ended its run today on ABC.
The cancellation of both All My Children and its sister show One Life to Live were announced this past April, and normally that would mean both shows would be lost to the pages of time, but someone stepped in to save both shows. It was announced in July that a company named Prospect Park had obtained the rights to both series, and that they would become Web series that you could watch online. Since that time there has been some talk that the shows would also find some way to air on cable, but details of how this will work have not been made clear as of yet.
Due to the lead time of the announcement that the show would live on, All My Children was given time to work on an ending that would make the series feel like it had reached any normal conclusion on a Friday afternoon. With all of the series regulars gathered in one place, and one of the “bad boys” of the show hiding in a tunnel with a pistol, a gun shot rang out as the screen faded to black and the credits rolled. We are left to wonder who may have been on the receiving end of that bullet until the series returns, but for now it just feels like it will be some sort of extended hiatus.
The original plan called for the new version of the series to premiere this coming Monday, but due to prolonged contract issues, the new start date is now set for January. With only two actors having been named so far as continuing with the series, that leaves a whole lot of potential people to have been killed off.
I will admit I had wandered away from this series for a year or two, but when I saw the end coming, I jumped back on to see how it would all wrap up. I have watched the series on and off since the mid-70′s, so it was still intriguing to me to see how some of my favorite characters would end their days in Pine Valley. The ending left me both elated and annoyed to be honest. While there was some sense of closure to some stories, we were left with two major cliffhangers: The gunshot and the identity of the mysterious woman with a charm bracelet that simply reads “B.”
Ending the series this way does give you a sense of continuity when the new version fires up, but for those who wished to make a clean break, or may not have access to the relaunch, you’re left with a, “What the hell?” sort of feeling. Yes, there were a lot of nods to the history of the series in the waning days, but couldn’t we have just started fresh when it comes back? You could have dug up any number of story lines to engage the old audience as well as new people, but instead you totally left it up in the air without a thought to those who may not be able to continue on.
Either way, a chapter has closed, and a bold experiment begins. I plan on watching when the show relaunches just to see how an hour long show works as a daily Web entity … and because now I have to know who the heck “B” is!
Hollywood is hitting a new level … a remake of a remake.
Not many people realize that the 1983 version of Scarface starring Al Pacino was a remake of a 1932 film of the same name. 51 years difference led to a considerably different movie, and one that has come to be a cultural touchstone and icon.
So of course Hollywood thinks it’s time to once again go to the well.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Marc Shmuger – former head of Universal – and Martin Bregman – the producer behind the 1983 film – are the men working on he new project. Like the previous two versions, this will supposedly be another tale of an immigrant working their way through the dark side of the American dream.
Do we really need a third film of this story? Both of the other versions are considered classics of their times, do you really think you can capture magic a third time? Highly unlikely. We are also talking about a severely more fickle audience today than even in 1983.
Good luck to these guys, but somehow I just don’t see this working again. Call me crazy if you must, but no matter how much you may love the 1983 version (as I doubt many of you know the 1932 one), do you really want to see a 21st century version?
[Thanks Steven for the tip]
The American Family Association (AFA) has decided that the time has come for them to take their fight for decency into the grocery aisles. Their target? Schweddy Balls.
Announced a mere two weeks ago, the Saturday Night Live inspired ice cream has already hit store shelves (I’ve tried it, I liked it.) One Million Moms, a sub-division of the AFA, has issued a statement against the new flavor and its “vulgar” nature.
In the past, Ben & Jerry’s has released controversial ice creams, like a special edition of Chubby Hubby called Hubby Hubby last year which celebrated gay marriage. It seems that offending customers has become an annual tradition for Ben & Jerry’s.
The ice cream is being released in a limited batch, which means it will be distributed nationwide but only for three or four months. If it proves popular, another batch might be forthcoming, but we hope not.
Ben & Jerry’s spokesman Sean Greenwood replied to the call for the protest:
The name is irreverent, but we’ve always been about having some irreverence and having some fun … We’re not trying to offend people. Our fans get the humor.
As per their usual modus operandi, the AFA is making a call for action that you should protest against Ben & Jerry’s, and as with just about everything this group does, I just have to shake my head.
This group takes offense at just just about everything under the sun, and as per usual there is next to nothing to get worked up over. They get offended by “Schweddy Balls” as they don’t want kids asking for it. What makes them think kids will know what the heck it means? How about if they ask questions you just say it’s named that because there are balls of sweets in it. If you don’t make a big deal out of it, they won’t even think twice about it. However, this group is positive that the smallest thing will cause children to turn into perverted savages.
You know what? It’s an ice cream. Get over it. How about you get worked up over something serious in this world that presents a real danger to children such as the lack of exercise, falling grades and in general how to get by in this world. But no, by all means, ignore actually spending time with your children and instead spend your time writing useless letters over the name of an ice cream. That is the perfect use of your time.
Typhoon Roke is headed towards Fukushima, Japan, and in turn the heavily damaged Fukushima Dia-Ichi nuclear plant.
Packing winds of 144 kilometers per hour (89 MPH), with gusts of 216 kilometers per hour (134 MPH), Roke is making landfall near Tokyo and then working its way towards Fukushima. The town, and its accompanying nuclear plant, were ravaged by the Japan Earthquake-Tsunami of March 11 and while the area has been evacuated for months now due to radiation, a larger area is new being included due to the impending storm. Up to an additional 1 million people are being told to leave the area immediately for their safety.
Besides the actual danger of the storm, there is an issue with the amount of contaminated water currently residing in the basements of the reactors that have been used over the months to cool the exposed nuclear rods. Apparently there is up to 500 tons of additional ground water that have leaked into the buildings due to cracks in the cement, and the addition of the rains plus winds whipping it around, there is no indication of just how far these waters could be spread now.
You can see a picture of Typhoon Roke below (click for a larger view) and you can see this is a massive storm. It is moving rapidly and has the potential of making this already horrific event that much worse. Even taking the radiation out of the equation, Japan is about to be rocked with rains, flooding and even more damage. Just how much can this nation take?
Please remember you can help by checking out the Japan Earthquake-Tsunami Relief. It has been over a month since the tragic events of March 11th, but they still need our help.
[Via Bloomberg, thanks to jdawgc for the tip]
