Batman: The Dark Knight International Posters

source: omelete.com & geeksofdoom.com
The marketing buzz is reaching fever pitch for Batman: The Dark Knight, with a range of posters released around the world to help promote the upcoming Christian Bale/Chris Nolan film.

This is definitely a case where the pictures paint a thousand words, so I will just tone down on the text, and let you enjoy the pure image goodness from the latest in Batman: The Dark Knight's advertising campaign.

As always, click for a larger version.

X-Files 2: I Want To Believe

Teaser shots and bootleg trailers have stormed the net from the upcoming X-Files 2: I Want To Believe.

Way back on the 2nd of November we announced that X-Files 2 was being released (see X-Files 2?). Things have been powering along since then with the film now officially in post-production.

Clearly it is looking as though the relentless appetite from fans for the science-fiction / mystery / thriller TV series hasn't waned since it ended its run in the 90s, with hype and buzz snowballing for the film as the finishing touches are placed on the sequel.

The official film trailer is embedded below:



The scenes of Billy Connolly screaming "it's here!" and digging through snow work well with the dramatic music and fight/chase scenes involving Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson).

It's my guess that Connolly is playing the role of some form of Government psychic enlisted to find either a:

1. Downed alien spacecraft
2. Cavern full of aliens
3. Abandoned military base... full of aliens

Just to spoil X-Files fans even more, here are a stack of photos from the upcoming film courtesy of fellow film fanatics at slashfilm.com:

(well okay... this last one is a lie.)

Wesley Snipes in Lockdown

Action star Wesley Snipes, star of Blade, Drop Zone and US Marshalls, has been sentenced to serve time in prison for failing to file taxes.

It's a rare example of star power not preventing a prison sentence, with Snipes set to serve three years within prison - a year served in jail for each year he failed to file his taxes.

Somewhat harsh for a relatively minor offense, and I can't help but wonder that poor Snipes has been an unlucky target by a judge set to make a name for himself. While Snipes' career has recently hit a bit of a lull with a number of direct-to-DVD releases, this is still a man who has shared billing with top-level actors such as Robert DeNiro (The Fan), Sean Connery (Rising Sun) and Dean Cain (Futuresport).

Nathan J. Hochman, Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department's Tax Division was quoted by TMZ.com saying that, "Snipes' long prison sentence should send a loud and crystal clear message to all tax defiers that if they engage in similar tax defier conduct, they face joining him and his co-defendants ... as inmates in prison."

Snipes argued that it was only around $228,000 in taxes that was unaccounted for, with the Government claimed the total was more along the lines of $2.7million. Blaming his naivety in financial matters for the oversight, Snipes still received the maximum penalty.

A range of character reference letters were sent to the judge from Hollywood, with Denzel Washington and Woody Harrelson amongst those writing in to support their friend. These are all available to read here. Denzel calls Snipes a "mighty oak", and Harrelson talks about racism he experienced when they were together working on the film "Wildcats". Clearly these rather odd statements didn't impress the judge too much.


Exactly how much of his 3-year sentence will actually be served behind bars remains to be seen, with fame usually ensuring an early release date. Notable cases being Michelle Rodriguez's 180-day sentence for violating her parole being reduced to a mere 18 days, Paris Hilton serving three days of a 45 day sentence, and pal Nicole Richie spending a soul-crushing total of 82 minutes behind bars for her four-day DUI sentence.

8 Pointless Laws All Comic Book Movies Must Follow

source: cracked.com
From the US comedy site Cracked, this is a great link that covers 8 Pointless Laws All Comic Book Movies Must Follow.


While normally I much prefer to report on film news, this was sent through to me and it really seems to hit some solid truths when it comes to those big budget blockbuster extravaganzas.

Hollywood is a land of money and cowardice. Every big film is basically a $150 million gamble, so they tend to play it safe and stick to a successful formula.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the genre of big-budget superhero franchises, where it's been decided that you must follow most if not all of the eight rules below...

You can check it out at Cracked.com - and it features such hard rules, with examples for the following 8 comic book laws...

1. The First Film Requires a Tedious Origin Story
2. The Sequels Must Have Multiple Villains
3. In Part 2, the Hero Must Reveal His Identity to Someone
4. Part 3 Must Feature an Evil Version of the Hero
5. The Hero Must Lose His Powers at Some Point
6. The Bad Guys Must Invade the Hero's Secret Hideout
7. A Villain Must Redeem Himself
8. The Fifth Film Reboots the Franchise

A quick warning, that there is the odd swear word in there during the article, but the examples and rules seem to be proven correct time and time again. Plenty of classic films get skewered, and there are some great observations.

Once you are done, be sure to check out our current Based On Comics list at Quickflix. It features a tonne of the usual contenders, along with a fair few surprises from films that you probably didn't know where based in ink.

An Inconvenient Truth 2: I Want To Believe

source: thesun.co.uk
It is looking as though our real-life Captain Planet, Al Gore, wants to make a sequel to his 2006 Academy Award-winning film, An Inconvenient Truth.

Broken by somewhat dubious news sources (such as The Sun UK and Treehuggers.com and Rogue Government.com), Mr Gore is convinced that while his first film on climate change raised awareness and public interest about global warming, there is still much work to be done.

Speaking to The Sun, Gore said that:

"When politicians walk down the pavement, four or five of every ten people they meet ask, ‘What are you doing to solve the climate crisis?’ he said. “If you ask people their opinion, more than two thirds will say, ‘It’s a very serious issue, we’re responsible for it. We need to take action’.

“But then if you give them a list of 25 or 30 issues and ask them to rank them in order of seriousness, climate change comes at the bottom or near the bottom."

Wanting now to change laws and policy, the follow up would attempt to have a greater impact on the public and attempt to instigate major change.



Not without his detractors, Al Gore's film caused considerable debate when it was released with news stations exposing his hypocrisy in talking about climate change and challenging viewers to "change the way they live," all while himself leading a jet-setting lifestyle, and owning several homes.

The most famous statistic being that the Al Gore mansion uses twice as much electricity in a single month as the average American family uses in a year. A damning figure that Al Gore deflects by stating he purchases carbon emission offsets - an explanation that many claim to be a cop-out, and a shirking of responsibility.

To provide a counter-argument to An Inconvenient Truth, a documentary was released in 2007 titled The Great Global Warming Swindle. Using interviews from a range of scientists, economists, politicians and writers, the film attempted to portray the alarm regarding global warming as a fallacy and borderline conspiracy. One of the many reasons spoken about in the film for the alarm on climate change and over-use of fossil-fuels was to prevent Africa from becoming a developed nation.



After release, at least one of the interview subjects complained about the way his interview was edited and used in the feature film, and disagrees with the conclusions drawn by the documentary overall.

What are reader thoughts on global warming, Al Gore and the future of the world?

Crank 2: High Voltage Cast and Plot

source: empireonline.com
It turns out the film Crank, starring Jason Statham and Amy Smart, was popular enough to deliver a sequel - with a storyline every bit as over the top and ridiculous as the original.

For those unaware, Crank was the 2006 film that told the story of professional hitman, Chev Chelios (Jason Statham), who was injected with a poison called the "Beijing Cocktail" that would kill him unless his heart rate dropped.

This cued an action movie that was pretty much as close as a film can get in giving the viewer the experience of a Ben Cousins weekend. Gangsters, hospital visits, pretty girls and cop chases all set to a blaring techno-rock soundtrack.


I don't want to ruin it for those who haven't seen the film, but the original didn't seem to leave that much room for a sequel.

That hasn't stopped filmmakers though. Crank 2: High Voltage tells the story of Chev Chelios... back again only this time a mobster has stolen his indestructible heart and replaced it with a dicky electronic pace-maker thing that requires constant jolts of electricity to keep it pumping.

No doubt in 2011 I'll be writing about an upcoming Crank 3: Blood Vengeance, in which Statham is involved in a complicated medical procedure which sees him being turned cold-blooded against his will, and having the charge up in direct sunlight or else risk terminal advanced leprosy.

Amy Smart is returning as his girlfriend Eve, and the same writer/director team is back on board. While the original Crank was hardly Oscar-material, it was a fair bit of fun. Here's hoping that they can continue with the over-the-top formula with the sequel.

Cartoons Come To Life

Photoshoppers have used their skills to create realistic versions of some cherished television cartoon characters. The results are... well... somewhat creepy. Decide for yourself and have a look below:

The first selection comes from Pixeloo, and shows Homer Simpson (The Simpsons), Nintendo's Mario and Jessica Rabbit (Who Framed Roger Rabbit). Apparently their technique is just putting the realistic textures over the existing cartoon framework.





Next up comes Destination Creation, who has made The Simpsons and The Smurfs "real". A different technique with this one, in that the artist has tried to turn them a lot more humanoid. Still, terrifying results... The artist calls them "Simpsonsoids".




As always, click for a larger image. Does anyone have any thoughts on these nightmarish creations?

Why Lucas and Hitchcock Disagree on MacGuffins

The MacGuffin was a term popularized by late director Alfred Hitchcock, and basically refers to a plot device, such as an object or a goal, that kicks in the third act.

Hitchcock's thoughts were that the more vague the MacGuffin, the better. Someone who may agree is Quentin Tarantino - whose 1994 film Pulp Fiction had a fantastically vague MacGuffin in the form of a suitcase that everyone was hunting down, though the audience was never made aware of exactly what it was in the case. Other examples of Tarantino's MacGuffins include the suitcase full of diamonds in Reservoir Dogs, and the "Five-point-palm exploding heart technique" in Kill Bill.

Another obvious MacGuffin would be in American Pie, in which case the MacGuffin is goal of the main characters - to lose their virginity.



The vagueness of the MacGuffin works, apparently because it allows audience members to imagine and project their own wants and desires into the object - thereby making the MacGuffin a guaranteed justifiable reward for all the the characters trouble in the film.

Where Alfred Hitchcock and George Lucas disagree is that Hitchcock believed the MacGuffin to be a gimmicky device that gets things rolling, where George Lucas thinks of it more as the final goal. Something incredible and powerful that matters as much to the audience as the stars of the film.

The original Indiana Jones had it. In Raiders of the Lost Ark, Indy was in a race against Nazis to capture the Ark of the Covenant which held not only the ten commandments, but also functioned as an apparent "radio to God".


If that's not enough to get your audience emotionally vested in your film, then what is?

Lucas wasn't quite so happy with the Indiana Jones follow up MacGuffins. Speaking to Vanity Fair in 2008 he said, “The Ark of the Covenant was perfect. The Shankara Stones (Temple of Doom) were way too esoteric. The Holy Grail (Last Crusade) was sort of feeble—but, at the same time, we put the father in there to cover for it. I mean, the whole reason it became a dad movie was because I was scared to hell that there wasn’t enough power behind the Holy Grail to carry a movie."


The trick with the new Indiana Jones film was to find a new, perfect MacGuffin. Something that would not only work perfectly to hook those audiences in, but also fit with the chronological time that has passed in the Indiana Jones universe. Indy is now 20 years older, so the new MacGuffin and story would now have to position him squarely in the 1950's.

And just what is this new MacGuffin for 2008's latest Indy film? A crystal skull of course. A plot device which is rumoured to throw the main characters in all kinds of situations involving Area 51 and aliens. Something that definitely fits with the 1950 era considering the Roswell incident (in which the Government issued a press release stating it had recovered a crashed 'flying disc' at a ranch near Roswell, New Mexico) happened in 1947.


Scheduled for release later this year, only time will tell if this new MacGuffin will cause audience members to be spellbound and amazed at the Indy legend once again.

Other Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull Posts at Quickflix:

• Indiana Jones 4 Trailer!
• Indiana Jones 4 Shots and Spoilers

Another Image from GI Joe - Scarlett

source: joblo.com
Late last month we reported on the First Images of GI Joe showing Ray Park as Snake Eyes. Now another official image has been released, this time of the carrot-top, crossbow wielding Scarlett.

Scarlett's played by actress Rachel Nichols, who has appeared on your screen in hits like Alias and films like The Amityville Horror , Shopgirl and Charlie Wilson's War.

Original cartoon/comic version of Scarlett

Thankfully they have decided to drop the strange original colours and go for something that's a little bit X-Men 3: The Last Stand and shade Batman Begins, but with a military edge. As per usual, click it for a larger version.

Rachel Nichols as Scarlett

M. Night Shyamalan is Happening

M. Night Shyamalan (shah-MAH-lawn) is quite a storyteller, there's no doubt. The man struck box-office gold with his massive worldwide smash The Sixth Sense which he both wrote and directed.

The Sixth Sense (1999)

1999's The Sixth Sense really put him on the map in a big way. One of only four horror movies ever to be nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award, its worldwide box office takings were close to $680million. The following year it was the most rented VHS/DVD title in the world with over 80 million people who missed it at the movies getting gobsmacked by the twist ending in the comfort of their own home.

His next project, Unbreakable, was a modest success but never really took off the way it was intended. Planned as the prequel to either two or three films, this was the part of the overall story arc in which both the hero and villain characters are really given a solid, massive back-story. A movies worth of back-story in fact.

Unbreakable (2000)

Starring Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson, it was a superhero movie aimed at people who don't want lycra costumes and one-liners, but are very interested in character development and story. The sequel to the film would finally show the big good vs evil showdown.

Only it never did quite well enough to warrant that sequel. As a result Unbreakable is a great movie, but suffers from essentially half a story.

Signs(2002) saw Disney pay Shyamalan the highest amount Hollywood has given to a scriptwriter, with a cool $5million about his story of a farm-living family discovering crop circles on their property and, eventually, aliens. It was a popular film starring names like Mel Gibson and a then not-so-famous Joaquin Phoenix.

Signs (2002)

Then things went kind of strange for the director. People started to get a little suspect of his films and their "twist" endings. After all, a twist works best when you aren't expecting it and the twists present in films after The Sixth Sense were gradually downgrading in quality. Still good, but not quite as much of a "wow effect" as audiences had hoped.

Maybe he had just used up his best ideas.

The Village (2004) divided audiences who either loved the film, or ended up angry. The Village told a story about members of a close-knit village who cannot enter the woods surrounding their community in fear of dangerous creatures.

The Village (2004)

Perhaps it was due to the studio's methods of mis-marketing the film, but people went into it expecting a tight horror/thriller and were left with something that tried to be a little too clever for its own good. That, however, was a rip-roaring success compared to his follow up, the complete dud that was Lady In The Water (2006).

Having a very public row with Disney, who wanted changes in the script, Shyalaman took his script to Warner Bros. who were too happy to let him film it according to his original vision. Based on a short story Shyamalan used to read to his children, and starring Paul Giamatti and Bryce Dallas Howard, the film was a failure - both commercially and critically - only scoring a measly 24% on RottenTomatoes.com

Previous rumours of Shyamalan's monterous ego and arrogance seemed proven by the film, again written and directed by Shyamalan, which was about a water nypmph, or 'narf', called "Story" (Howard).

Lady In The Water (2006)

Story visits a stuttering apartment property manager Cleveland (Giamatti) and they discover that he must do everything he can to help Story find a writer, so that she can inspire him to create a world-changing novel. A novel so revolutionary and important that the writer will eventually be assassinated and never be able to see the world-changing effects his incredible work will have on mankind.

The films writer, M. Night Shyamalan, plays the part in the film of the world-changing writer. Egomaniac.

Which now leads us to his latest film The Happening. Currently in post-production and scheduled for release sometime this year, The Happening has had precious little released about it other than the trailer, the cast (Mark Wahlberg, Zooey Deschanel and John Leguizamo) and a basic synopsis - that it's an apocalyptic sci-fi thriller about a family on the run from a massive threat to humanity.

The Happening (2008)

Let's hope he can climb back after his recent misses. Supposedly he has dropped his ego a little bit after the misfire of Lady In The Water and this new film could be his chance to reclaim his place on the Hollywood map and get things back on track.

As long as the "twist" isn't that the apocalyptic event isn't global warming - or that it's all a dream - then I think this new project could really have some potential to deliver the quality that everyone knows M. Night Shyamalan is capable of producing. It looks terrific.



Anyone else keen to see The Happening? Or has Shyamalan tested your patience one too many times? Let me know.

Another Chance for Giant Shark Movie

source: latimes.com
The megalodon was a giant shark that lived in prehistoric times, between about 18 million to 1.5 million years ago and was the apex predator of its time. It is the largest carnivorous fish known to have existed. (Wikipedia).

Megalodon VS Great White VS Human

It's a scary creature and one that has been ripe some time for a fitting Hollywood story to support it. Apparently some scientists actually believe that it could still be around today in incredibly deep waters, but this isn't a popular theory.

As a beach fanatic, who still hears the iconic Jaws tune every time I get to about waist-height water at the beach, I share the same terrifying fascination of sharks as many people out there. The idea that there are even a fraction of scientists who firmly believe a 20m shark could still be swimming around chewing on whales gives me the shivers.

Recreating the krill experience

Which is why I have been eagerly waiting for years for the worthy big screen adaptation of Meg. It's been in development hell since New Line bought the film rights of the bestselling 1997 sci-fi novel "Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror" by Steve Alten.

Since then New Line and Disney have both passed over his story of an 80 foot man-eater, but just recently a new financier has stepped up to the plate. Knowing full well that the people want to see Jaws on steroids, the new team (that has been behind upcoming big movies Hellboy II and The Watchmen) are looking to add Meg to their stable of blockbusters.

It all seems like an improvement on previous bidders. New Line invested millions in the project and even had director Jan De Bont (Speed) on board to helm the picture. They eventually jumped ship because they believed that the risks outweighed the benefits.

Safe and sound

Disney took things in a radically different (bad) direction when they had the rights, with author Alten recalling that they wanted to have the shark growling like a pit bull and complete with... well... wings.

So finally it is looking like this project is getting another chance to hit our screens. There have been plenty of near-misses and failed "sure-things" with Meg, but it's good to see that this potential blockbuster isn't quite dead in the water just yet. Steve Alten's website lists an estimated 2009 release.

No matter what happens, it has to be better than Shark Attack 3: Megalodon...

Controversial Ledger/The Joker Scene to be Cut?

source: cinemablend.com
Rumours are flying around that Warner Bros are looking to edit out a controversial scene in the upcoming Batman: The Dark Knight film that isn't rating well with test audiences at all.

The scene apparently features The Joker pretending to be dead inside a body bag. Warner are concerned that with Heath Ledger's tragic passing that it may be a case of "too soon" for audiences.

Personally, I believe that if this rumour is true, then the scene should stay. It's what Ledger would have wanted, and I'm sure that cutting any part of his performance for the sake of being political correct would be a real mistake.

This rumour did remind me of other times entertainment has been edited or cut in light of a tragedy...

After the tsunami disaster in Southeast Asia, all references and scenes in The Simpsons "Gabbo" episode (which showed a tidal wave) were all removed without a trace. In another example, a season 9 episode, in which the family visit the Twin Towers in New York, was completely removed from syndication for a number of years. Even now it is only now shown in the US with major edits.

Another instance off the top of my head is a Twin Towers scene in Spiderman that never made it into the final film release. The scene showed a helicopter being piloted by bank thieves getting snagged by a giant web in between the two buildings.



Do any Quickflix Blog readers have thoughts on this topic?

White House Biographers Not Happy With "W"

source: hollywoodreporter.com
Daddy issues, liquor problems, baseball-obsessed and livid at Saddam Hussein - these are the qualities that Oliver Stone has generously given to current President George W. Bush in his upcoming biopic titled "W".

The script, which was sent out to a range of Bush biographers, has been met with mixed reactions. Biographers are conceding that scenes in the film are based in fact, but that members of the White House are "over-the-top caricatures" and that dialogue and actions portray the 43rd President and his inner-circle as completely inept.

"It leaves you with the impression that the White House is run as a fraternity house with no reverence for hierarchy, the office itself or for the implications of policy."

"Everybody calling everybody else nicknames and chatting about whether to go to war as if they were chatting about how to bet on a football game really misses the mark of how many White Houses, including this one, are run."

Stone aims to release the film (starring Josh Brolin) while Bush is still in the Oval Office, and could potentially drop it in time for the November election. Every one of Stone's political movies have stirred up controversy and this one doesn't look like an exception.

It sounds like the White House is a pretty fun place to work.

More on Iron Man - New Teaser & Images

A new teaser trailer for Iron Man has been released today with the apparent aim of showing off the spectacular CGI and special effects.

I admit, we seem to be going a little Iron Man crazy here at Quickflix. There is nothing too much to be said about it that hasn't been said already. Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard and Jeff Bridges. Giant robotic suit. Fighting. Fire.

You get the gist.

Good news for anyone else salivating over the thought of this release is that Paramount have released a new teaser trailer and high definition images of the film. The trailer, titled "Run Before You Can Walk," is linked just below and embedded on the Apple site:


The rest of the available updated, great images from the film are just below:





More updates as they happen...