The Flickcast

Cable Joins ‘Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2’

Posted on October 26, 2009

Last week, we got word of the first new downloadable characters for the sequel to Marvel Ultimate Alliance in X-Men’s Psylocke and Spider-Man’s Carnage. After that, in one of the promo screen shots for the character, we got a glimpse at a few of the other characters soon to be announced, including Magneto, Black Panther, and Cable.

It looks like that may have jumped the boat, as the developers announced this weekend that Cable is indeed the next downloadable character for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2. There’s a new trailer for the character after the jump, which you can check out, and there isn’t a whole plethora of information on when the content will be hitting our consoles and for how much.

No word yet on Magneto and Black Panther, but seeing as how it only took a week to announce 3 new characters, don’t expect to have to wait very long to play the Ukanda King and Master of Magnetism. Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 is now available on all next gen systems.

Review: ‘Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant’ – Shannon’s Take

Posted on October 24, 2009

The Vampire’s Assistant is based on the first three books in a series of twelve by Darren Shan. Like the Twilight series, The Vampire’s Assistant books are targeted towards young adults, and naturally this movie is as well. If you are not a tweener, or a fan of the book series, it is best to steer clear of this painfully bland adaptation. The movie seems entirely too self-aware of its target audience, and consequently it takes the safe route at every turn throughout the film. This results in a rather boring final product, despite some bright spots.

Darren (Chris Massoglia) and his friend Steve (Josh Hutcherson) sneak out one night to attend a freak show in their area. Ringmaster Mr. Tall (Ken Watanabe) introduces a plethora of captivating creatures, including a snake boy (Patrick Fugit of Almost Famous), a woman capable of spontaneously regenerating lobbed off limbs (30 Rock’s Jane Krakowski), a bearded lady/psychic (Salma Hayek), and a girl with freakishly large teeth (Kristen Schaal), amongst others.

The opening scene featuring the freak show was my favorite part of the movie. It aptly portrays the shock, excitement and disgust that two young boys would feel the first time viewing such an event. It also had some very cool makeup/CGI effects. Having been a fan of the original Freaks (1932) I tend to delight in this subject matter, and I was not disappointed.

Fan Film Friday: ‘The Wrestler’ (Grindhouse Version)

Posted on October 23, 2009

Those who had the dedication to sit through nearly 4 hours of film in the theater when Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez’s Grindhouse hit cinemas worldwide are tough. Not for the four-hour film stint, but because they managed to sit through Death Proof without tearing out their eyes.

Thankfully, we all had a selection of great, fake trailers in between the films to keep us entertained. Trailers directed by names like Eli Roth, Rob Zombie, and Edgar Wright, which are all still rumored to be in the works as real films. We all know that Rodriguez’s Machete is being planned, and almost ready to start.

After seeing those trailers, it was only a matter of time before the YouTube generation got their hands on some fun footage, and made it look like a Grindhouse film. What better film than something as depressing and cheap-looking as Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler.

Check out the masterpiece after the jump. Also, be sure to check out all of our other Fan Film Friday links while you’re at it.

TV RECAP: ‘Flash Forward – Gimme Some Truth’

Posted on October 23, 2009

Christine Woods and John Cho With the departure of Marc Guggenheim, this leaves me a little dismayed with FlashForward and last night’s episode was a bit of departure and not that good. It did, however, expand on some characters, rather than just focusing on Fiennes and Cho. We spent time getting to know Courtney B. Vance’s character of Stanford Wedeck, who is Head of the FBI LA office, and Christine Wood’s character Janis Stark.

We open on Fiennes, Cho, Vance and guest star Barry Henley as Agent Vreede, walking out of some building. Fiennes and Vance are talking and Vance says something about not telling anybody anything about his [Fiennes] flash forward or they are”d.o.a.” Fiennes is on the phone with Janis Hawk telling her something about funding. Getting into a car, they are immediately set upon by a black SUV and hit with a Rocket Propelled Grenade blowing up the car, seemingly killing all four inside.

Cut back 39 hours, and the four of them are in a basement taking a lie detector test. Apparently they are in Washington, D.C for a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on what the various agencies are finding on the black out case, and they have to take the test for the hearing. After the test, Fiennes talks with his sponsor who tells him to go to AA meeting which Sophia Walger overhears the sponsor talking about while he fixes some stuff around the house. He’s apparently helping them out around the house while Fiennes is away doing document support for Vance in DC.

New ‘Left 4 Dead 2’ Trailer Hits the Web

Posted on October 23, 2009

Anybody who’s been to a theater in the past year or so knows that zombies are all the rave today. From Sony’s Zombieland bringing in nearly $65 million in a matter of weeks, to the sudden resurgence in the work of George A. Romero, zombies are neck-and-neck with vampires these days.

With that said, of course the craze is bound to hit the video game world, as it did in spades with last year’s Left 4 Dead. The game managed to cram every zombie movie scenario into a first-person shooter to make you feel like you were really fighting for your life against an army of the undead, as scary as that sounds. While there were some pretty haunting moments in the game, there really isn’t anything as cathartic as blowing up zombie heads.

Like clockwork, game developer Valve (along with EA Games) is releasing the sequel to the highly-praised game this year around the same time. The characters are all new, as are the settings, but the most important is the new storyline. Many games these days are more compelling than some films, and the newest trailer for the game only proves that further.

Check out the Zombie Survival Guide trailer after the jump, and be sure to race to the game stores on November 17th when the game gets a nationwide release.

Review: ‘Amelia’

Posted on October 23, 2009

amelia-hilary-swank

The new biopic Amelia stars two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank as the aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart. Often remembered more for her mysterious disappearance than her aerial accomplishments, the new movie tries to steer focus back to her highly publicized, if short lived career as a professional female pilot. Only eight years after the Nineteenth Amendment granted women the right to vote, Earhart burst onto the public radar in 1928 by being the first women to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, becoming an instant celebrity. Just nine years later, on July 2, 1937 while attempting to circumnavigate the globe, her plane disappeared over the Pacific Ocean, giving birth to several theories and myths regarding her death.

Directed by Mira Nair (Salaam Bombay!, Monsoon Wedding, The Namesake) Amelia is a visual feast, as expected by a director that seems to delight in filming rich colors and textures—the only thing Vanity Fair had going for it was the exquisite Indian-influenced production design, while Monsoon Wedding, a personal favorite, burst with it’s saturated color choices. What impressed me the most was the aerial footage, vast and luscious and beautifully shot, they transported the audience and inviting us to experience the wonder and infatuation Earhart must have felt while in the cockpit.

Watching the film, you GET why Earhart risked her life and spent a fortune financing her voyages. At a time when women were barely able to work outside of the home, she was sailing through the sky (phenomenon that is viewed more as a tedious hassle by modern day travelers, than the improbable feat it actually is) and accomplishing feats that only a few men had successfully done before her.

First Teaser for ‘Season of the Witch’

Posted on October 23, 2009

Halloween is officially 8 days away (7 if you celebrate on the 30th), so it would make sense for a studio like Lionsgate to put out lots of genre films to coincide with the spookiest of holidays, right? Wrong, because according to them, March is the new Halloween. Whatever that means.

There is a brand new teaser out for Season of the Witch, starring Ron Perlman, Stephen Campbell Moore (The Bank Job), Ulrich Thomsen (Hitman), and yes, Nic Cage. Also, don’t be surprised that a film about witches isn’t coming out around Halloween, because director Dominic Sena’s last film, Whiteout, sat on the shelf for nearly a year before a soft release.

Though October is considered a dead financial month for films, it was nice that the trailer tried to cover it up by proclaiming that “Halloween is for Amateurs.” March isn’t a much better time, but it is where bad horror films go to die, so don’t expect much on March 19th when Season of the Witch opens nationwide.

Check out the first teaser trailer after the jump!

Review: ‘Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant’

Posted on October 23, 2009

cirque-du-freak

Cirque du Freak: the Vampire’s Assistant, directed by About A Boy’s Paul Weitz and based on the series of young-adult novels by Darren Shan, is a surprisingly good movie with all the requisite scares, humor, characters and excellent performances (at least by most of the cast) you could want. Its a good time at the movies unencumbered by many of the things which handicapped something with similar subject matter like Twilight. The real trick here is that the movie doesn’t take itself too seriously and in so doing, manages to be fun and entertaining as well as, at points, quite scary.

Going in to this film I was pretty ignorant of the subject matter and its origins, never better illustrated by my wondering why so many teenagers were in the screening of this film during Fantastic Fest. Also, having not read any of the 12 books of the Cirque Du Freak saga, I can’t say how faithful an adaptation it is of the book. But having any prior knowledge of these characters or reading the books is not really a prerequisite for enjoyment of this film. The world created by director Weitz and the rest of his team is fully populated and realized and envelopes you from the first moments. Its a world that anyone, child or adult, should have no trouble understanding and becoming enthralled by.

Fortunately, the filmmakers accomplish this without the need for lots of gore or real violence (the film carries a PG-13 rating) so this film, because of these reasons and due to its origins in the young adult series of novels, is suitable for most teenagers and adults alike. Although, adults may not appreciate one or two of the jokes that fall flat and may wish the film spent more time with the intriguing supporting characters rather than with the film’s two teenage leads, they will still find this a charming and entertaining good time.

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