by Shannon Hood, May 24 2010 // 11:00 AM
Note: this episode was directed by Rian Johnson, who also directed Brick and The Brothers Bloom. This recap assumes that you have seen the episode, heavy spoilers.
Well, this evening we had a two man show, in every sense of the word. This episode was 100% dialogue and character driven, which was a little surprising to me considering that we only have 3 episodes left this season.
As usual, we get treated to a visually pleasing opening sequence. This week, we see a housefly, going about its business in extreme close-ups while we hear “hush little baby” in the background.
I immediately thought of the expression “fly in the ointment”, and found myself thinking about it throughout the show. This was a very distinctive episode in that it only featured Jesse and Walt, and was self-contained within the meth lab.
Walt discovers that there is a fly in the lab, and he completely over-reacts and obsesses over the insect. He tries various methods of swatting the irritating bug, to no avail. He then takes it upon himself to go onto the mezzanine level of the lab and promptly takes a nasty spill while trying to depose of the fly.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: AMC · Drama · TV · TV Recaps
Tagged: "Fly", Aaron Paul, AMC, Breaking Bad, Bryan Cranston, Drama, TV, TV Recaps
by Chris Ullrich, May 24 2010 // 10:00 AM
Speculation as to if Apple CEO Steve Jobs would make the keynote address at this year’s Apple Worldwide Developer Conference in San Francisco can finally be put to rest. Today, Apple issued a press release officially announcing that Jobs will deliver the WWDC keynote on June 7th.
The event, which sold out in a record eight days, will take place at the Moscone Center’s West building with Jobs kicking things off at 10:00 AM Pacific. Of course, now that Jobs has confirmed his appearance for the keynote, the real speculation can begin as to what he will announce that isn’t already out there.
The folks at Gizmodo and others have probably already revealed the new iPhone. Fortunately, we haven’t seen the final version of iPhone OS 4.0 and had an exhaustive demo of its features so expect that. Plus, even though Gizmodo supposedly had the real iPhone, there’s no guarantee it was the final design. The phone could look a lot different once its “officially” revealed by Jobs.
Not only that, WWDC isn’t only about the iPhone, so expect to see some other things announced during the keynote. On that note, here’s a few predictions of what you may see announced by Jobs:
• iPhone 4th Generation with A4 processor (like iPad), more memory and storage. Front facing camera for iChat. Released end of July.
• iPhone OS4 release announced for end of July also.
• New version of iTunes.
• Mac OSX 10.7 Preview. Look for more improvements under the hood and less “amazing” features. Also, may see more of Apple’s move to the ‘cloud.”
• Updated Mac Pro systems.
Check out the full press release after the jump.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: Apple · Events · News · Software · WWDC
Tagged: Apple Developer, Hardware, iPad, iPhone, iPhone OS 4.0, iTunes, Keynote, Mac Pro, Moscone Center, Software, Steve Jobs, WWDC
by Joe Gillis, May 24 2010 // 9:00 AM
In case you’ve been living under a rock or, perhaps, on an island somewhere, you are probably aware that ABC’s Lost finally came to a conclusion last night. The show’s series finale met with a whole range of feelings, opinions and emotions which is often the case when shows with a rabid and outspoken fan base come to an end.
Whatever your feeling about the ending, audiences everywhere most likely will have their own opinions and would offer their own alternative scenarios as to how the ending should have gone. The shows executive producers, Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, are no exception. Even though they finally settled on an ending for the show, they also had several alternative endings in mind prior to making their final decision.
Fortunately, through the miracles of modern technology and The Jimmy Kimmel Show, we are able to bring you those alternative ending right here. So, sit back, relax and experience what might have been after the jump.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: ABC · Abrams · Drama · Mystery and Suspense · News · TV · Video
Tagged: ABC, Carlton Cuse, damon lindelof, Evangeline Lilly, J.J. Abrams, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Lost, Matthew Fox, Terry O'Quinn, TV
by Matt Raub, May 24 2010 // 8:00 AM
This week could mark the the continuation of an epic summer blockbuster season as Disney comes out of the box swinging with Prince of Persia. Robin Hood and MacGruber had pretty lame opening week’s, while Iron Man 2 and Shrek Forever After took home a nice chunk of change. Disney, along with Bruckheimer and most of Hollywood, believe they will continue that success with this Jake Gyllenhaal-starring vehicle.
In the film, Gyllenhaal plays Dastan, a character made famous by the classic side-scrolling video game Prince of Persia. The movie is set against an epic historical backdrop, with plenty of fantasy elements thrown in for good measure. Joining Gyllenhaal are Gemma Arterton (Clash of the Titans), Ben Kingsley, and Alfred Molina.
In the first three clips we’ve got for you (that’s right, there will be more), Dastan and Nizam (Kingsley) prepare for battle, we get some nighttime sneak attacks, and Dastan and Tamina (Arterton) have a lover’s quarrel.
Check out the clips after the jump, and catch Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time in theaters Friday, May 28th.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: Action · Disney · Drama · Fantasy · Movies · News · Video
Tagged: Alfred Molina, Ben Kingsley, Disney, Gemma Arterton, Jake Gyllenhaal, Jerry Bruckheimer, Prince of Persia, Prince of Persia: the Sands of Time
by Shannon Hood, May 24 2010 // 7:00 AM
Normally $71 Million sounds like a pretty good haul, but despite making that over the weekend, Shrek Forever After was widely considered a box office disappointment, compared to its predecessors. In 2007, Shrek 3 made over $121 Million on its opening weekend, a cool $50 Million over this total.
Consider that the 3D ticket prices were much higher for Shrek 4, and it seems that not near as many people were clamoring to see the final chapter of the fairy tale franchise. It also opened on a staggering 4,300 screens, which is a full thousand more than most tent-pole movies get, so lack of accessibility certainly wasn’t the issue.
However, word of mouth by exiting audience members is good (cinemascore of A, according to Entertainment Weekly), and the kiddos will be out of school in the next few weeks. The family demographic will likely provide Shrek 4 with a long run at the box office, similar to How to Train Your Dragon. The movie will need to have that very thing happen to earn back its reported $165 Million budget.
Coming in at a very strong second place was Iron Man 2, earning a robust $26.6 Million in its third week in release. Not too shabby. Robin Hood earned another $18.7 Million, bringing its two-week total to $66 Million. The film still is performing better overseas, so it should earn back its whopping $200 million budget.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: 3-D · Action · Box Office · Comedy · Dreamworks · IMAX · Movies · News · Universal Pictures
Tagged: Iron Man 2, Letters to Juliet, MacGruber, Robin Hood, Shrek Forever After, Universal
by Bob Starr, May 21 2010 // 3:00 PM
Here’s a list of things that made a blip on The Flickcast’s radar this week from around the Internets, Twitter and beyond. Let us know if we missed anything cool so we can include it in the next installment of On the Radar.
• Planning a LOST finale party? Well, no party is complete without LOST BINGO!
• Morgan Spurlock, Harry Knowles, Stan Lee and Joss Whedon teaming up to fight crime. . . er make a documentary about San Diego Comic-Con.
• Apparently, nobody in the US gives a crap about Manga. We could have told you that.
• James Cameron’s Avatar has sold a metric butt load of DVDs and Blu-rays. Color us blue for surprised.
• Larry David and friends head to NYC to do the last season of Curb. That show is still on?
• Are you a fan of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air? How about Lord of The Rings? Well, what if Gandalf sang the opening theme? Mind = Blown!
• Did you get a chance to check out Maggie Q in the new show Nikita? If not, what are you waiting for?
Continue Reading →
Posted in: News
Tagged: Gandalf, James Cameron, Joss Whedon, larry david, Lord of the Rings, Lost, MacGruber, Maggie Q, Nikita, On The Radar, Stan Lee
by Joe Gillis, May 21 2010 // 2:00 PM
Happy Friday. To celebrate this momentous event we bring you more previews for Syfy’s shows Stargate Universe and Merlin, which both have brand new episodes tonight.
First off, we take a look at Stargate Universe. In this clip the Destiny crew must help expose a mole inside Homeworld Command before its too late. Yes, moles are never a good thing, no matter where they appear.
Next up on Merlin, a mysterious warrior’s arrival sends Arthur on a quest that could change his life. Along the way he learns more about his father and more about what happened to his mother. Needless to say, this changes the King forever.
Check out both previews after the jump. Stargate Universe airs tonight at 9/8C followed by Merlin at 10/9C only on Syfy.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: Action · Drama · News · Sci-Fi · SyFy · TV · Video
Tagged: Action, Anthony Stewart Head, Drama, Merlin, Ming-Na, Previews, Robert Carlyle, Sci-Fi, Stargate: Universe, SyFy, TV, Video
by Matt Raub, May 21 2010 // 1:00 PM
It’s unfortunate that Saturday Night Live has gotten a rep for being pretty unfunny in the past couple of years. Everybody will, of course, claim “the show stopped being funny when X left” but the truth of the matter is that it becomes a completely different beast every few years, starting when they made the first major cast change back in 1980.
These days, the level of writing, led by head writer Seth Meyers, has been adapted to a younger audience. With bits like music videos from The Lonely Island or the one-liners in Weekend Update, they are definitely appealing to a crowd under the age of 30. Even a skit like MacGruber, which is based on a bumbling protagonist (Will Forte) and the inevitable explosion ending isn’t exactly highbrow comedy, but mostly visual humor and random vulgarity.
Sadly, that’s exactly where the film adaptation of MacGruber picks up. It continues the trend of sight gags that don’t really pay off and more vulgarity than an uncensored episode of South Park. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge fan of SNL, Forte, and the MacGruber skit, but the film lives up to the low expectation everyone had for it, in just being a 30 second skit stretched out into 90 minutes.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: Action · Adaptation · Comedy · Late Night · Movies · News · Reviews
Tagged: Hot Shots, John Solomon, Jorma Taccone, Kristin Wiig, Lonely Island, MacGruber, Powers Boothe, Ryan Phillippe, Saturday Night Live, Seth Meyers, SNL, Val Kilmer, Will Forte
by Joe Gillis, May 21 2010 // 12:00 PM
Sure, the iPad is a great device and has a really amazing screen. In fact, the screen is so good its a pleasure to watch streaming movie and TV content via apps like the one from Netflix. But what if you want to watch said content on your giant plasma screen at home so others can enjoy it too?
Well, you’re in luck because as of this week, the Netflix app has been updated to version 1.0.2 which now allows you to connect a TV and stream movie and TV content from your iPad for viewing. This is accomplished using Apple’s Dock Connector to VGA adapter for the iPad and an audio cable.
Before you get too excited, one caveat: The video output won’t be as good as what you would normally see on your TV. In fact, in some testing the video does not fill the screen and looks about as good as standard def content on an HD.
Still, it does give you an option you didn’t have before. Of course, to take advantage of this new feature you also have to purchase Apple’s $29.00 adaptor and some audio cable. So even though the Neflix app is free, the iPad and accessories aren’t. Welcome to the revolution.
Posted in: Apple · Movies · News · Software · Tech · TV
Tagged: Apple, Gadgets, Gear, iPad, iTunes, iTunes Store, Movies, Netflix, Software, Streaming Video, Tech
by Nat Almirall, May 21 2010 // 11:00 AM
Michael’s embroiled in the Sabre-flaming-printer-scandal. Sabre bigwig Jo (Kathy Bates) shows up and wants to know who sang to the press, putting Andy on the spot (apparently the titular whistleblower, but the camera seems to suggest weasly Gabe).
While Jo runs the investigation from the conference room, Michael tries sniffing out the culprit himself. His first stop is Darryl (who actually started the whole printer-fire controversy by trying to play a joke on Andy), and he reveals that he casually mentioned it to girl he was trying to pick up in a bar. Then Pam reveals that she let slip the rumor in daycare when she was trying to one-up another mother.
All the while the office is having its hard-drives scanned, which can always be counted on to reveal some strange and terrible truths about the Dunder-Mifflin (sorry, Sabre) employees. Kevin shows a great deal of concern over having the contents of his computer searched, and Toby’s apparently writing a mystery novel (“Why would a person who hates everyone want to have a relationship with the maid?”).
Michael holds an emergency conference with Darryl and Pam in Meredith’s minivan. Kelly joins in as well (“I think I tweeted it”), and the four decide to confess, but, naturally, Michael’s not up to it. Jo senses something’s up, and in a creepy Misery-esque turn (gotta mention it), drives Michael to the hanger where her private plane is kept (“Or you going to kill me?”).
Continue Reading →
Posted in: Comedy · NBC · News · TV · TV Recaps
Tagged: Comedy, Kathy Bates, NBC, Rainn Wilson, Steve Carrell, The Office, The Whistleblower, TV, TV Recaps
by Chris Ullrich, May 21 2010 // 10:00 AM
Regardless of any fan’s personal feelings about the project, it seems Fox is going ahead with its Plant of the Apes prequel film. In fact, today it was announced that Spider-Man’s James Franco has been cast as the lead in the film, now entitled Rise of the Apes.
As we mentioned previously, Rupert Wyatt is handling the directing duties of a script by Amanda Silver & Rick Jaffa. The story of Rise of the Apes concerns a scientist (Franco) who has been working on a cure for Alzheimer’s which is being tested on apes. The main test ape named Caesar starts to evolve rapidly due to the drug, and the scientist takes him home to live with him to protect him from cruel doctors.
Of course, as Caesar evolves he begins to realize that captivity isn’t for him and instead, he will rise up to lead his fellow apes to freedom. This story will show the modern day events that eventually lead to the apes dominating the human race as seen in the classic original Planet of the Apes films.
It will feature cutting edge ape effects by WETA Digital and will, for the first, time, have apes in it that are completely computer generated instead of being portrayed by actors in make-up. Could be cool, especially if there ends up being a bunch of great ape vs. man conflict.
Rise of the Apes will shoot this summer in British Columbia for a projected release on June 24, 2011.
Posted in: 20th Century Fox · Action · Casting · Drama · Movies · News · Sci-Fi
Tagged: Action, Amanda Silver, Caesar, Casting, Fox, James Franco, Movies, Planet of the Apes, Prequels and Sequels, Rick Jaffa, Rise of the Apes, Rupert Wyatt, Sci-Fi, WETA Digital
by Shannon Hood, May 21 2010 // 9:00 AM
At this point, what can I really tell you that you don’t know about Shrek? Unless you have been living under a tree stump in a swamp, chances are you are very familiar with the franchise about a lovable green ogre and a colorful cast of characters pulled from popular children’s fairy tales.
In this probable last movie of the franchise, Shrek (voiced by Mike Myers) is knee-deep in diapers and devilish toddler antics, and he’s not exactly digging the whole domestic thing. The realities of family life are weighing him down, and a disastrous birthday party is the last straw.
As is typical of most parents, he fondly recalls the pre-marriage and pre-kids days as being much better than they actually were. You know, that whole “the grass is always greener” mentality everyone falls victim to from time to time. In his delicate emotional state he becomes easy pickings for the shady Rumpelstiltskin, who offers Shrek one day as his former playboy self.
Continue Reading →
Posted in: 3-D · Animation · Comedy · Dreamworks · Kids · Movies · News · Paramount · Prequels and Sequels · Reviews
Tagged: Antonio Banderas, Cameron Diaz, Craig Robinson, Dreamworks, Jane Lynch, John Cleese, Jon Hamm, Mike Myers, Movies, Reviews, Shrek, Shrek Forever After