* Here are six clips from the already much-maligned The Spirit, directed by Frank Miller. It looks pretty and fun to me. A lot of my friends are freaking the fuck out over this movie, but look, they can’t all be There Will Be Blood, and superhero movies could use a Road House/Speed Racer/Sin City hybrid. Hell, any genre of movies could use that. (Via AICN.)
* The Fantagraphics blog coughs up some deets on Fanta’s upcoming Hans Rickheit graphic novel. It’s called The Squirrel Machine and is slated for release in 2010. I’m a fairly outspoken Rickheit activist so this is really delightful to me.
* Kenneth Branagh is directing Thor. How about that, man. This brings the total number of superhero movie directors who have had sex with Helena Bonham-Carter to two. As far as we know.
* Lost Season Five will air uninterrupted, with the possible exception of a clipshow-augmented skip week prior to the finale. Nice. (via The Tail Section.)
* They’re remaking The Crow, They in this case being Stephen Norrington, the guy who did The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and Blade. I would be lying if I said High School Sean T. Collins never dressed up like the Crow for Halloween then ended up not even going out, instead lurking around his parent’s house in pancake makeup and a black leather trenchcoat, so this news concerns that part of me. The graphic novel was actually rather good I always thought. (Via Bloody Disgusting.)
* Marc-Oliver Frisch describes his requirements for how a superhero story would constitute good Art, and then runs down some prominent writers in terms of whether they make the grade. It’s good reading even if he uses the dreaded “transcend the genre” criterion–worth a read, particularly if you’re looking to better understand the kinds of folks who are smart, demanding readers but still stick primarily with superheroes for one reason or another.
* Speaking of whom, my pal Ben Morse, an indie comics tyro, gives Kazimir Strzepek’s world-building exercise The Mourning Star a go.
* Check out some panels from Dave Kiersh’s upcoming Xeric Grant-funded book.
* Thanks to Rich Johnston for correcting the record on a story he ran once about being banned from Wizard’s message board when I ran it. (He wasn’t.)
* Missed linking to this when it was initially reported, but the Senate Armed Services Committee’s report on America’s use of torture and abuse of prisoners has found Donald Rumsfeld and other high-ranking officials responsible.
* Finally, here’s a great description of Sid Vicious, from Not Coming to a Theater Near You’s Evan Kindley in his review of Sid & Nancy:
here we have kind of a black hole at the center of all the frippery: Sid Vicious, whose very claim to fame was his nullity, his embodiment of the concept of “no future.”
Rickey told me about the Crow remake this morning and it makes me nervous. Nothing against Norrington, but The Crow is just one of those movies I don’t want to say remade by anybody. The original captured lightning in a bottle and every sequel since has shown that it’s tough to replicate. The GN is great, the movie is beautiful in my opinion, and we don’t need any more.
Every time you defend The Spirit flick, your defense gets less and less, um, spirited.
First we were supposed to lighten up because it was being helmed by a guy responsible for two of the greatest contemporary genre flicks (where responsible = did not actually script or actually direct).
Then it was “I will probably enjoy this.”
Now it’s “They can’t all be There Will Be Blood” (a weird comparison insomuch as I suspect nobody asking it to be There Will be Blood, they just don’t want it to suck).
I’m waiting for the “This new Spirit clips looks loads more fun than sharp stick up the brown eye. I can’t wait!” post.
When did I say he was responsible for 300? I don’t remember saying that. Are you sure you’re not mistaking this for my defense of Watchmen vis a vis Zack Snyder/Dawn of the Dead/300? As for “I will probably enjoy this” and what I said today, sometimes maybe I’m too deadpan for my own good. I haven’t ratcheted down my initial expectation that this should be a hoot and a half at all; that can be true at the same time as understanding that not all movies can be serious bizness. At any rate, how’s this: I think this movie looks like a ton of fun, and I’m looking forward to seeing Frank Miller harness his gonzo scripting style to state of the art digital tomfoolery in the service of showing a lot of punching and dudes getting their asses kicked and sessy ladies being sessy and other things that I generally really enjoy in movies. Ringing enough?
For what it’s worth, Sean, we just saw a commercial for The Spirit, Megan said how excited she was for it, I told her it’s getting panned by comic fans, then read her your blurb from above and she said, “Yeah, he’s absolutely right.” (And she’s definitely never seen Road House)
I will probably enjoy it as well.
I’m detached from the Crow beyond casually liking the movie as a kid. What I want is a Road House/Crow crossover. Think about THAT for two minutes.
Then think about making it in 3-D.
Hey you just made my day. I was wondering a few weeks ago what the deal was with that Rickheit project.