The Flickcast

Fantastic Fest: ‘Meet the Japanese’ Party Pole Dancing

Posted on September 26, 2009

meet-the-japanese-1 Last night in Austin during Fantastic Fest (which runs from September 24th to October 1st), guests were treated to a party at the newly-minted High Ball bar. One of the main reasons for the party was to introduce some of the Japanese filmmakers responsible for fest entries like Hard Revenge, Milly, Vampire Girl Vs. Frankenstein Girl and “Secret Screening” Robogeisha to festival attendees.

During the evening, Fest co-founder Tim League kicked things off with, what else, Karaoke. Next, the Japanese contingent served as judges for a “Samurai Call” contest where contestants, fortified with delicious Sake, would use their best voice and call for a Samurai. Finally, and this is the really interesting part and something that makes Fantastic Fest the great time it is, there was a Japanese pole dancing demo provided by one of the Japanese actresses in attendance. And yes, she even brought her own pole all the way from Japan. And no, its not that kind of pole dancing, so get your mind out of the gutter.

Fortunately for those of you who couldn’t be in Austin last night to witness this unique demonstration of skill and beauty, I happened to have my video camera with me and captured the entire thing for your viewing pleasure. So, click through to watch this incredible demonstration and get a little taste of what Fantastic Fest is all about.

Corey Feldman Returns for ‘The Lost Boys: The Thirst’

Posted on September 26, 2009

Edgar Frog Long before vampires glittered (Twilight) or were battling werewolves (Underworld) they were hanging out in backwater towns and convincing teenagers they were eating maggots instead of noodles (Don’t worry, it was kind of like the vampire version of a Jedi mind trick). For those who don’t get the reference, I’m speaking of vampire cult film The Lost Boys.

It’s been more then twenty years since The Lost Boys came out and to give you an idea of how different vampires were back then, here’s the tag line from the original film: “Sleep all day. Party all night. Never grow old. Never die. It’s fun to be a vampire”. Yes, being a vampire was “fun”, especially when the only real threat was a couple of comic book geeks who claimed to be vampire hunters.

It took 21 years for The Lost Boys: The Tribe, a sequel to this classic film to come out, but only a year later for the third installment to start production. Dario Piana is set to direct The Lost Boys: The Thirst which will be shot in South Africa. Based on a script written by Evan Charnov, the new film will focus on at least one of those geeky vampire hunters, Edgar Frog played by Corey Feldman:

“When veteran vampire hunter Edgar Frog finds himself destitute and almost friendless, he thinks his live has hit bottom – but wealthy vampire-romance novelist Gwen Liebling offers him a small fortune to go on the vampire hunt of a lifetime and rescue her son Peter from the Alpha Vampire D.J.Dusk. With the help of his friends Zoe, Lars and Blake, Edgar heads into a bloody battle to exterminate evil.”

Norton Talks Hulk In ‘The Avengers’

Posted on September 26, 2009

Edward Norton Since the official announcement came out that Marvel Studios was going to make The Avengers movie, I’ve maintained this would be the biggest comic book film ever. Coordinating the efforts to bring so many Marvel characters together, specifically Iron Man, Captain America and Thor, is something that just hasn’t been done before. It’s a massive endeavor and while we know who the heroes will be, the film’s antagonist still remains a mystery.

Speaking with MTV, Hulk star (and The Hulk himself) Edward Norton gave his thoughts on the matter, “In the comics, there was always a tension between the rest of the superhero community and he was always this problem… They treated him as this problem.”. Further, “Norton said he could definitely see the Hulk character becoming something that the rest of Marvel’s superheroes joined forces to battle.”

I agree making the Hulk a “problem” in the upcoming film is necessary as he was the anti-hero of the group; causing as many problems as his alter ego Bruce Banner solved. Perhaps more importantly he was technically a founding member of the team so his inclusion cannot be overlooked. That said, is the Hulk enough to be The Avenger’s sole antagonist? In my opinion, no.

While we have only seen Iron Man and the Hulk on the big screen so far it’s already apparent these heroes are powerful. Very powerful. Once you add Captain American and Thor to the roster you’re going to end up with an incredibly strong team who needs a villain that can equally that might. Also, with Thor dealing with actual Gods like Loki as enemies in his upcoming film, The Avengers will need something major to oppose them. Hulk just isn’t it.

At this point, even I’m still guessing as to who, or what that enemy could be. Have an ideas? Let us know in the comments.

Sony Gets Scripts For ‘Venom’

Posted on September 26, 2009

Spider-Man 3 was not the greatest installment of the franchise. It seemed for every great moment there was an equally bad one. Take Sandman (Thomas Haden Church) and Venom (Topher Grace) for example. Sandman was a compelling character you could get behind. Venom was a gimmick, tacked onto the last third of the film. That isn’t to say Grace was not brilliant as Eddie Brock, he was, but Venom just felt forced into an already busy plot.

Worse yet was having not one, not two, but three nods to The Lizard throughout the franchise by Dr. Curt Connors (Dylan Baker) but that villain never emerged. What a waste. Whether you love or hate Venom, writer Paul Wernick confirmed that Sony is working on a Venom spin-off:

“We’ve written two drafts of Venom, and the studio has it, and they’re pushing forward in whatever ways they push forward.”. Of course, this begs the question how will this relate to the upcoming Spider-Man 4. Wernick provided a very vague response, “Basically, the studio and Marvel and the Arads are taking our drafts and going beyond and figuring out what’s the next step.”

There is a silver lining to this. Paul Wernick, along with co-writer Rhett Reese, wrote the highly anticipated Zombieland film. While I’ve only seen the previews the movie looks brilliant. If they can bring that same sense of humour mixed with prevailing dread to Venom, I for one think the film may just work. No other details at this point but you’ll find them here as they develop.

Horror Review: ‘Paranormal Activity’

Posted on September 25, 2009

paranormal-activity

When I first heard about writer/director Oren Peli’s first person video camera horror film Paranormal Activity, I have to admit I was skeptical. Seeing some of the advertising and hearing the buzz from various sources, this film seemed to be yet another cheap video production still hoping to cash in on the “magic” generated by The Blair Witch Project. Fortunately, after seeing the film at a sold-out midnight screening during Austin’s Fantastic Fest, I can thankfully say my first impressions of the film were completely wrong . . . mostly.

The premise of the film is simplicity itself. A young couple have lived together for a few years and gradually there have been strange and unexplained sounds and the woman (Katie Featherston) it is revealed has been experiencing this type of “activity” since she was a young girl. Her boyfriend, the annoyingly overconfident Micah (Micah Sloat), is determined to get to the bottom of these phenomenons and so begins his quest to videotape the couple’s activities 24 hours a day in order to catch the ghosts in action and ultimately, to take care of the situation and get them to stop.

One of the film’s biggest strengths is that it follows the Hitchcock tradition of not showing everything. Instead, during several scenes, the camera stays in one place as the couple goes off to investigates a noise or other disturbance and the audience is left only able to hear what’s happening, their imagination filling in the blanks. This conceit serves the film far more effectively than an outlandish display of gore or other visual effects would have. This technique is used very effectively in Paranormal Activity, much more than it has been lately in films like Cloverfield or Quarantine.

3 Actors Jump Onto ‘Secretariat’

Posted on September 25, 2009

secretariatcast Seabiscuit just got some steeper competition. ‘Secretariat,’ currently in pre-production for a 2010 release from Walt Disney Pictures, has added three more actors to a cast that already boasts Diane Lane (Nights In Rodanthe). The Hollywood Reporter states that Dylan Walsh (Nip/Tuck), John Malkovich (Burn After Reading) and Scott Glenn (W.) have signed on to the film centering on the owner of the famous thoroughbred racehorse that captured the United States Triple Crown in 1973.

Malkovich will play the horse’s trainer Lucien Laurin. Glenn plays Ogden Phipps, the thoroughbred owner/breeder who famously lost the hall of fame racehorse in a coin toss while Walsh plays husband to Lane’s Penny Tweedy – also known as “the first lady of racing” – Secretariat’s owner.

While selling a film about horse racing might seem like a stretch, the aforementioned Seabiscuit managed to earn $120 million plus at the box office. By throwing in a more recognizable subject and a few of Hollywood’s more notable actors, this project should undoubtedly find its legs, thoroughbred-like or not. Still no word on who will play the title character, though.

New Smallville Season 9 Clip: ‘Zod’

Posted on September 25, 2009

General Zod is one of those characters that has an interesting back story in the Superman franchise. The character was originally created in 1961 by Roger Bernstein and George Papp, but didn’t become remotely as popular as when portrayed by Terence Stamp in Superman I & II. Since then, each reincarnation of the character has only been a monument to that role. Until now, that is.

Callum Blue has been added to this season’s cast of Smallville as the general who was sentenced to the Phantom Zone after attempting to rebel against his Kryptonian government. He was released at the end of the last season, and looks to be building his own army already in tonight’s premiere.

Blue comes from the popular Showtime series Dead Like Me, so he’s no stranger to the world of fantasy. The irony of the in-place Smallville cast is that Terence Stamp is already a regular as the voice of Jor-El, Clark’s father. Somehow, there is bound to be a moment when the new and old Zod cross paths, so keep an eye out.

Check out a clip from tonight’s premiere after the jump, and if you’re a Battlestar Galactica fan, see if you notice something familiar about it. All that seems to be missing are octagonal dogtags and the line “So Say We All!” Don’t forget to catch Smallville as it kicks off season 9 tonight on The CW at 8PM/7PM Central.

Brütal Legend Brings You…Demothon!!

Posted on September 25, 2009

We here at The Flickcast can’t wait to play Brütal Legend. While the demo goes live on October 1st, the team at Double Fine Productions is conducting a live video webcast to promote the demo, answer all of your questions about Brütal Legend and give you a taste of life inside Double Fine! Need more details? Here you go.

Tune in to brutallegend.com on Thursday, October 1^stat 12pm PST for a live broadcast from Double Fine Productions in San Francisco. The webcast will feature interviews and antics with the Double Fine team as well as Live Q&A’s from fans at www.twitter.com/brutallegend, awesome giveaways, a message from Tim’s Swine Flu proofed bunker, Spoilers, Live Axe Lessons, and much more.

In the meantime, we’ve got a video for you, straight from Ormagoden, the Cremator of the Sky, the Destroyer of the Ancient world, the Lord of all things Brütal, who has demanded that 666 Million humans download the face meltingly awesome Demo of Brütal Legend or he will give “everyone” Swine Flu. Sounds like we’d better listen!

Brütal Legend hits the shelves on Rocktober 13th. You can check out Ormagoden’s video message of doom and destruction after the jump, and don’t forget to download the demo on XBOX Live and Playstation Network next week.

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