The Flickcast

British Super Hero Series ‘Misfits’ Returning for a Fourth Season

Posted on January 3, 2012

For those who are stuck in the box of US television, and have yet to venture into the exciting world of British TV, you’ve missed quite a bit. Sure, there are the hits like Doctor Who and Sherlock, but one show that doesn’t get nearly as much play as it should is the E4 series Misfits.

Just finishing up its 3rd season, the show follows a band of teen troublemakers who, while stuck on a chain gang for community service, are struck by lighting, granting them superpowers to do whatever they choose. We wish that was all the show was about, but it’s managed to become one of the best shows on TV in only 21 episodes.

This past season saw the departure of the show’s lead comedic relief, Robert Sheehan, and the introduction of This is England’s Joseph Gilgun. Now, with two more characters leaving the show in the season 3 finale, we can expect to see the show make a return for a fourth year.

We don’t want to spoil anything for those who haven’t caught up, but you can catch up on Misfits over on HULU.com. Not even the show’s creator has a clue where the band of juvenile delinquents are headed next year, but we definitely know that it will involve plenty of superpowers, and tons of swearing.

Can’t wait!

Get Confused With this Foreign Trailer for Juan Diego Solanas’ ‘Upside Down’

Posted on January 3, 2012

Visually Stimulating seems the be the name of the game as we are in the first few days of a brand new year. With films like The Hobbit and Hunger Games taking over the year’s “most anticipated” list, it makes sense that other studios are going to try to pick up the slack and release some very edgy-looking films.

With that in mind, we get the very first trailer for Argentinian director Juan Diego Solanas’ upcoming domestic flick, Upside Down, in which the world is exactly as we know it, except there is an entirely different world that lives directly above us, and they don’t like us very much.

The film stars British heartthrob Jim Sturgess (Across the Universe) and the sometimes affable Kiersten Dunst as the star-crossed lovers in which this story finds itself circling. Clearly, there is a metaphor to be found in the premise, but we can’t stop thinking how funny it is that Kiersten Dunst is the love interest in an upside down world. A bit “on the nose”.

Take a look at the enticing trailer after the jump, and while you won’t be able to understand the anticipated “In a World” title screens (they’re in French), you will be able to get the gist through dialogue. Enjoy, and catch Upside Down in theaters later this year.

Terrance Malick’s ‘The Tree of Life’ Top Film for Online Critics

Posted on January 2, 2012

In what will surely come as a surprise to many people who don’t follow the Internets (also, most likely to mainstream audiences), Terrence Malick’s The Tree Of Life was the top film at the 15h annual Online Film Critics Society Awards. The awards are given out by the Online Film Critics Society, an organization made up of film reviewers, journalists and scholars based in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Latin America and the Asia/Pacific Rim region.

Malick’s film took the top prize for best picture as well as director, supporting actress (Jessica Chastain), editing and cinematography. No other film won more than one award.

Michael Fassbender took best actor for Shame and Tilda Swinton was best actress for We Need To Talk About Kevin. Best supporting actor went to Christopher Plummer for Beginners.

Click through for the full list of winners:

Coming in 2012: ‘Alan Wake’s American Nightmare’ for XBLA

Posted on January 2, 2012

2011 was a huge year for gaming. One of the biggest both in terms of sales but in terms of the number of AAA titles and new up and comers that made their way to the big stage. We are hoping the same holds true for 2012. Over the next few weeks we will periodically bring you info, screens and trailers on some of the games to have on your radar over the next 12 months.

All the way back in 2010, Remedy released an XBox exclusive simply titled Alan Wake. After being shrouded in mystery for the early part of its development, players would eventually be introduced to Alan Wake, a writer, who ends up living through one of his own creations. The horror action game would go on to earn an 83 on Metacritic as well as win Time magazine’s Game of the Year for 2010.

In Q1 2012, Remedy will be releasing their followup to Alan Wake with Alan Wake’s American Nightmare. The game will take players out of the original Bright Falls lakeside township to the middle of Arizona where he encounters his alter-ego Mr. Scratch which was revealed in the final chapter of the original game.

Combat looks the same with the player using a light to weaken shadowy enemies before blowing them away with guns but the mechanics of the game look like they have changed. In the trailer below, you can notice a scoring system including a multiplier. It looks like combat will now award players points, most likely to introduce a leaderboard system for XBLA.

Monday Picks: ‘Horror Express’

Posted on January 2, 2012

Happy New Year and welcome to another year of your favorite films here at Monday Picks. This week’s feature to ring in the New Year is the 1972 Spanish horror classic Horror Express a.k.a. Panic on the Trans-Siberian Express. The film stars both Hammer Films greats Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee who battle an alien life form which has existed on Earth for millions of years.

The film opens in 1906 Manchuria where English naturalist and explorer Alexander Saxton (Lee) has discovered an ape-like creature that has been frozen for thousands of years. Convinced he has found the missing link, Saxton and his party crate up the fossil and prepare to transport the cargo by train to Moscow, Russia.

While in Shanghai, Saxton encounters his fellow Royal Society member Doctor Wells (Cushing) who also plans to board the train bound for Moscow. While under guard, Saxton’s crate is picked by a thief who turns up dead on the station platform, his eyes turned white. A crazed monk and spiritual advisor to a Polish Count believes Saxton’s cargo is unholy. Saxton dismisses the monk’s ranting as spiritual nonsense.

Chris Ullrich’s Best of 2011: Movies, TV, Games, Gadgets and More

Posted on December 31, 2011

As is the usual practice almost anywhere were column inches or post counts matter, writers such as myself take to their keyboards and make lists. I am no exception and, with a great deal of difficulty and toil, have managed to cobble together a list of what I think are some of the best things of 2011.

I don’t really want to bore you with a lot of explanations as to why I picked what I did. Suffice it to say these picks are mine and mine alone. Also, they are not in any particular order, mostly because I find it hard to rank them that closely. Or, I was just too lazy.

Either way, here you go.

Movies

Drive
The Artist
Attack the Block
X-Men: First Class
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
The Descendants
Thunder Soul
13 Assassins
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2
Hugo

Film Score Friday: ‘The Artist’ By Ludovic Bource

Posted on December 30, 2011

The third score from this year’s Golden Globe nominated set that I have the pleasure to review is from The Artist. The film is an interesting one, a silent film shot in black and white, set during Hollywood’s golden age. The film goes through great lengths to simulate the style of films the movie is about, and one of it’s biggest assets is it’s score.

Musically this could have come right out of the late 20s, it has a timeless quality, that allows it to feel fresh at the same time it transports you back to film music of a long passed era. Silent films used to rely heavily on music to help convey emotion, and as a result the music would often tell you as much of a story as the pictures did. It is exciting to hear that style of music in cinema again.

There is also a tremendous positivity abound in the music. Ludovic Bource has crafted a musical composition that damn near forces you to smile. One of the things that we too often hear these days is dark, monotone notes played for a mildly uncomfortable effect. This score excels at the exact opposite, and is incredibly fun.

Check This Out: A ‘BSG’ Reunion In Ron Moore’s ’17th Precinct’ Pilot

Posted on December 29, 2011

When Battlestar Galactica ended its run a few years ago fans were pretty disappointed. It was a great show that was enjoyed by a lot of people. One of the reasons for that enjoyment was the great cast.

Ron Moore, Exec. Producer and Co-Creator of the re-imagined series, tried to give fans something they’ve been wising for with the pilot for his series for NBC called 17th Precinct. Reuniting for the pilot were BSG alumni Jamie Bamber, James Callis and Tricia Helfer along with Caprica‘s Esai Morales. Sadly, no Edward James Olmos was in sight.

However, what we did get is a pretty interesting and inventive pilot which gives a new twist on the well-worn police procedural. It’s so fresh, in fact, that’s that’s probably the reason NBC decided not to pick it up. They would rather have a block of Whitney Cummings and Chelsey Handler shows and put Community on “hiatus” than have original programming.

But, I digress. Check out the pilot after the break while you still can. It might go away just as fast as it appeared.

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