“I’m Going on an Adventure!” (The Hobbit film review)

Like many other fans, the fact that Peter Jackson decided to do a three-film Hobbit trilogy elicited an epic eyeroll and shrug of the shoulders. But after finally seeing the first Hobbit movie…wow. An absolute wow.

Now, if you have huge, grand expectations, of course you will be disappointed–that’s how that works in life. But regardless of your level of hardcore fandom and love for middle earth this is a spectacularly entertaining and visually stunning film that lives up to The Lord of the Rings saga..and maybe even sets a higher bar.

Even though it’s been many years since the release of Return of the King, the film automatically sends you right back into Middle Earth as if you never left. The epic scope of the film and the incredible cinematography, from the rolling hills of the Shire to the underground kingdom of the dwarves, snow peaked mountains to the lair of the goblins and the sparkly beauty of the elvish kingdom…the sheer epic scale of Middle Earth and its beauty (mostly thanks to New Zealand) is overwhelming. Paired with the meticulous detail of each set, such as the books and dishes in Bilbo’s home to the gorgeous costuming, to the equally epic braiding of each dwarf’s hair, makes this film very richly textured and an absolute feast for the eyes. The music also adds to the Middle Earth atmosphere–the flutes of the Shire, the trumpets and drums during orc battles, and the strings when the company meets the elves. Again, nothing feels forced, and the return of several key LoTR characters (including some surprising cameos at the beginning) makes the prequel feel all the more natural.

I know the film was shot in some sort of super duper high definition (as you can see, the jargon escapes me), and while at times it was absolutely striking in the detail–from the specks of dirt on Bilbo’s face, to Smeagol’s expressions while guessing the riddles–it was not “too realistic” or any of those sorts of complaints that came up before the film’s release.

If you’ve read the book, about 70% of the film will be familiar; of course, there are certain elements that are heightened and condensed to make it a more entertaining film, plus Jackson is adding in all sorts of things from JRR Tolkein’s cliffnotes in order to have enough content for each film. Perhaps my favorite addition that wasn’t in the book was Ratagast the Brown, the slightly wacky nature wizard who rides a sleigh led by giant rabbits. (Yes, he’s like Santa Claus, but better. My last-minute gift request is a porcupine named Sebastian.) That being said, the additions feel so natural that one who hasn’t read the book wouldn’t know the difference (aside from maybe the giant rock men battle); there are even sections taken exactly from the book, such as Gandalf’s “good morning” and the riddles. The three hours are filled to the brim not only covering the story itself but also totally swallowing us in Middle Earth–also, you’ll be surprised at how many times you’ll laugh.

If you’re a Sherlock fan like me, it might take you about a half hour to accept the fact that Dr John Watson (aka Martin Freeman)  is, in fact, a hobbit–but he pulls off the role so convincingly, seemingly with very little effort (which means that, in fact, it took so much), you will be thoroughly convinced that he is three and a half feet tall with hairy feet. The film for its three hours does a wonderful job showing Bilbo’s gradual development as a comfortable, solitary stay-at-home hobbit to a valuable member of the company, and most deserving of his adventure. Richard Armitage did an admirable job filling the shoes of Thorin Oakenshield, Gandalf showed more of his mischevious side as Gandalf, and Andy Serkis was at his devious best as Smeagol. Even with a company of 13 almost all of the dwarves have their own character moments; the film certainly does justice for a race that constantly gets the, ahem, short end of the stick when it comes to fantasy troupes.

That being said, and not to go all feminist here, but this is most certainly a male centric film. Aside from some female dwarves and hobbits at the beginning, and then some nice lady elves playing flutes and serving delicious elvish snacks (hmmm)…the only woman who had a speaking role in the film was Galadriel, and that’s at least halfway through the film. Granted, this is part of the original story–there’s no Galadriel, and therefore no women, in the book. And Galadriel, played by the stunning Cate Blanchett, is not only a sight to behold on screen, but has all sorts of nifty elf powers like telepathy and disappearing into thin air, Batman style. From what I’ve heard, a female elf will be joining the company in the second film, but the fact that this is such a male-dominated film is still a problem. Even though Galadriel is great, she doesn’t have any real impact on the story, nor is she a warrior–and if anything, this is a story about war.

The almost-three hour investment in the film absolutely flies by. Like the other Lord of the Rings trilogy, it is impossible to not be swept away by how gorgeously this film is crafted visually. That and an engaging, entertaining and epic storyline, you have for yourself a great film. It might not win any Oscars but Tolkein fans can rest assured that the Hobbit trilogy is off to a fantastic start.

other stray thoughts (and/or snarky comments):

- Smaug was done brilliantly. Never showing the dragon completely made him all the more ominous and leaves some surprise for the next two films (not to mention his Benedict Cumberbatch voice. Do dragons wear hats? Can he be wearing an ear hat, please?) It sets him up as the “final boss battle” while there were plenty of other villains to take care of in this film.

- That being said the ‘pale Orc’ was a bit of a bland villain, he did a lot of ordering and grunting and epic Dragonball Z stare-downing. But then again, considering how he solved his missing-a-left-hand problem, he’s obviously a Tim Burton fan and seen Edward Scissorhands one too many times.

- Even though there were essentially no women in the film that doesn’t mean there wasn’t any romance. Remember the epic Transformers-made-of-rock battle and Kili and Fili are separated? The look of absolute LONGING?? Oh yes. There’s something there. Just don’t tell tumblr.

- The 3D was nice, particularly the scenes with the ring, but I’m not sure I would say it’s a must-watch in 3D. Because 3D tends to be a bit darker than 2D I wouldn’t be surprised if the image is even sharper and more beautiful without stuff popping out at you.

- Anyone else think one of the trolls sounded EXACTLY like Pinky from Pinky and the Brain? Narf!

- Saruman (played by Christopher Lee, aka Count Dooku) absolutely took some notes out of Emperor Palpatine’s book, How to be a villain in secret when the entire audience knows you’re bad.

- Also, the giant eagles land the dwarves & co on Pride Rock. Exactly Pride Rock.

Promethea: Book 1 (review)

Promethea: Book One
writer: Alan Moore
artist: JH Williams
publisher: Wildstorm

First of all, read those two names again. Alan Moore. JH Williams. I can probably stop the review right here. But I won’t!

Promethea is my first winter break read and suffice to say, I wasn’t quite sure how it would go. While I adore JH Williams’ art from Batwoman, it was Alan Moore that caught me hesitating. His fame in the comic book world can’t be overstated, but it’s also hard to overstate how crappy he’s written women in many of his most famous books. Watchmen’s Silk Spectre is an idiot, V for Vendetta’s Evey is generally useless, and don’t get me started on Babs in The Killing Joke. So what would happen with a graphic novel that is completely about a female hero?

It. Is. Amazing.

Promethea is not so much a superheroine, as a demi-goddess reaching back to ancient times. She is a sort of conduit of imagination and storytelling, and has taken numerous host-bodies over the centuries–whenever an author writes of her, she becomes either his/her inspiration, or the author him/herself. The book is set in an alternate 1999, and follows the next Promethea, college student Sophie Bangs, who is writing about Promethea for a term paper–but she obviously doesn’t know what she’s getting herself into.

Promethea is, in a word, rich. Moore creates a rich, complex interaction between the material world, and the immateria, a realm which encompasses all that is beyond the material–imagination, fiction, science and language; Promethea is able to access both realms, and so can some of the other mythical (and so far evil) creatures as well. Moore integrates all different sorts of mythologies and symbols into the story, which Williams then takes visually into his stunning layouts and borders (if you’ve read Batwoman you have an idea of what to expect).

Promethea could be described as a mix between Sandman and The Unwritten, but as a female protagonist she is absolutely kickass. Like Tommy in Unwritten, it will take Sophie some time to evolve from the newbie entering her role for the first time to fully fledged heroine, but she has great resolve. And Promethea, who now is a separate entity but will merge more fully with Sophie in time, is a fascinating, unique character with all sorts of awesome powers and a badass reputation–think Wonder Woman gone ancient Egyptian.

The only element that’s thrown me off so far is the alternate 1999 New York City, which is obviously more technologically advanced, polluted, and weird than the NYC we remember before the turn of the century. There are some other surrounding players, such as a five-member superhero team–but at the moment it’s unclear why this particular AU was needed for the story.

I highly recommend Promethea for anyone who loves mythology-infused stories, and is looking for a strong heroine outside your mainstream superhero fare. That and the names “Alan Moore” and “JH Williams” should convince any comic book fan that this is absolutely worth a try.

DC, stop playing rugby with our feelings.

According to The Mary Sue today, Gail Simone has been re-hired as the writer for Batgirl.

This might be a Christmas miracle as TMS says but for now I’m just confused.

Gail Simone’s tumblr says:

I KNOW WHO THE NEXT WRITER ON BATGIRL IS…

…and her name is ME!

I am typing this on a snowy road, cell service is about to disappear, I know everyone has a million questions, but…

BATGIRL, baby!

Thank you to DC for this privilege, and a million thank yous to everyone who wanted to see this happen.

I am ECSTATIC.

I still…I don’t understand. Was this a major, major administrative mistake on DC’s part? Did they actually fire Gail Simone and then watch the internet explode and realize, whoops, maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to dump our best writer?

Or maybe they crunched the numbers and realized that Batgirl was one of the few titles actually turning a good prophet. And then they realized that because the world was not ending, more Batgirl issues would need to be written.

Whatever. Gail Simone is still writing Batgirl. So I guess I have to keep giving DC some of my money. *sigh*

Gail Simone has been let go as writer of ‘Batgirl’

Mere weeks after Karen Berger stepped down as Executive Editor at DC, writer Gail Simone has been told by DC that she is no longer writing Batgirl.

The Batgirl title, which brought back Barbara Gordon from two decades in paralysis, is one of the most popular of the DC New 52 comics; Gail Simone herself, writer of other wildly popular DC titles like Birds of Prey and Secret Six, is widely beloved by fans, with whom she engages in daily rapport on her Twitter.

The Mary Sue has a great report on this, adding that Gail’s plans for the Batgirl title–including creating a transgender character–will likely be dropped as the future Batgirl writer will likely want to blaze their own trail.

As a fan of Gail Simone and Batgirl, I cannot imagine why DC would do this to not only one of their most popular writers, but also one of their only female creators. When they announced the New 52, Simone’s Birds and Six were among the biggest casualties in which she had to drop ongoing story lines and lose great characters.  Batgirl was her last ongoing title at DC.

Gail, please know that you have lots of fans out there who will support you wherever you go, myself included. I don’t care what you write, I’ll love it and I’ll buy it.

And this is just one more reason to stop reading DC. Good job, folks.

Star Trek Into Darkness: Khan it Be?

The hotly anticipated Star Trek: Into Darkness trailer came out today, but the Japanese version had a little extra! One scene that could, maybe, possibly reveal just who the villain for the sequel will be, portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch (best known for his titular role in BBC’s Sherlock).

(possible spoilers below)

In the additional scene, we see two hands on opposite sides of a glass door; one of them is making the Vulcan gesture for “live long and prosper.” This is one of the pivotal scenes from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, in which Spock sacrifices himself in order to save the rest of the Enterprise crew. Cumberbatch has been rumored from the start to be playing Khan, but this has been met with vehement denials.

I can foresee two major options:

1. Khan is indeed the sequel’s villain, and all the denials from Abrams, Cumberbatch and others were  misdirection. (Deja vu, anyone? There was a very similar situation with Marion Cotillard playing Talia al Ghul for Dark Knight Rises, she “denied” it twice.) Therefore, Into Darkness is a loose remake of Wrath of Khan, though there will likely be changes due to the alternate reality nature of the film. But, will Spock really be killed off this early?

2. Khan is NOT the villain, and this scene is the misdirection. Either Spock dies by the hand of another villain (further emphasizing this ‘alternate reality’) or he doesn’t die at all, and this moment is simply an homage to Wrath of Khan, in the same way that the first Star Trek had several clear homages to the original series (such as the Kobiyashi Maru). Therefore, Cumberbatch is actually playing Mitchell, as Karl Urban “slipped” earlier this year, or someone else.

There are of course other minor possibilities within these options–but it is obvious that the cast and crew are trying to surround the film with as much mystery and debate as possible. What do you think?

Star Trek: Into Darkness hits theaters next May, but if you want to see the first nine-minutes, there will be a special preview before The Hobbit in IMAX!

GE: Robots on the Move (and happy thanksgiving!)

Those of you enjoying Thanksgiving football (or not, if you’re a Lions/Cowboys/Jets fan) might have noticed a wonderfully nerdy commercial for GE, featuring some of your favorite AI characters including KITT from Knight Rider and Data from TNG ( who is an android, not a robot, thank you very much.)

Now, if only they had gotten C3PO and R2D2 in on it..they’d have to pay LucasFilm Disney a whole lot of cash though. Still pretty neat.

Hope you’re enjoying food, family and some great Black Friday deals today!

A Week-ish Later: Five Thoughts About Disney Owning the Force

So. It’s been a week, more or less, since the world found out that George Lucas was signing over Lucasfilm–including such properties as Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and LucasArts–over to the megatron of  entertainment, Disney, for a whopping $4 billion.

It’s been a week, and while the news was a lot to digest at the time, we’ve had quite a bit to distract us since then–the horrific destruction in the wake of Hurricane/Superstorm Sandy, and we re-elected President Obama. Both of which were really really huge, in their own respective ways.

So, now that the winds have died down so to speak, here’s how my perspective has changed now that I’ve had the time to fully reflect on the news:

1. This deal has been going on for a long, long time (ago…)

George Lucas didn’t just wake up one morning and think, ‘Hey, I think I want to sell Lucasfilm…hmm…eenie, meenie, Minnie, Disney!’ You might have noticed that there were lots of hints to a preexisting relationship between Lucas and Disney: not only are the Indiana Jones and Star Tours rides respectively at Disneyland, but Disneyworld also hosts Star Wars Weekend every year. Not to mention those Disney plush dolls and figurines in Star Wars garb…I’m sure this has been in talks for a long time, just hushed up really well until the last week.

2. Lucas is pretty awesome for giving (most of) the $4 billion to charity.

That huge amount of cash that the Star Wars creator is getting from this deal? He’s giving it to charity, specifically education, he says. Not that Lucas hasn’t made a fortune from his galaxy far, far away…but it’s still an honorable gesture.

3. The ongoing Star Wars franchise will change very little. Just ask Iron Man.

Remember when Disney bought Pixar? Or maybe that other mongol industry of geekdom, Marvel Comics? In both cases there was a fear that these companies would lose their individuality; in the case of Marvel especially, that more adult material would be censored or cut, there would be a huge change in leadership, and we would be all subject to annoying crossovers and terrible kiddy merchandising. But we all collectively exhaled when we realized that Pixar and Marvel kept doing the awesome they did with very minor changes.

Whether you love the Star Wars comics, Star Wars: Clone Wars, EU books, or something else, you should expect very little to change. Yes, Clone Wars is switching channels and we may get a crossover or two, but it’s not like Disney is looking to change the core of Star Wars. If anything, Disney is going to ensure its survival. And hopefully we’ll not only see more merchandising in Disney Stores, but also more rides in the Disney Parks, which is something that Lucas has specifically mentioned.

Also, Disney princes and princesses just got a LOT more badass with the addition of Han and Leia. That doesn’t hurt.

4. Old school Star Wars fans…take a chill pill.

“Oh dear oh dear”

Before you hit the back button all huffy, please understand that I am one of you. Granted, I was only a gleam in my parents’ eyes when they saw Episodes IV through VI in theaters, but I saw those films when I was a kid and I was no less than enchanted, in awe, and generally stupefied by the awesome playing out in front of my television. My goal was to grow up and become Princess Leia. (still my backup.) Just ask any of my friends, I freaking love Star Wars, and those prequels are as real as bad fan fiction.

And now an Episode VII is in the works. As if the prequels weren’t bad enough, we need a sequel? Can’t the younger generations just live with the classics for once? Even though it won’t be directed by Lucas (I’m personally pulling for Brad Bird), it still feels like a punch in the gut. And now Harrison Ford wants to come back only to kill off Solo. Nerf herder.

But if the comic book world has taught me anything, it’s that your most beloved characters and series will never be the same forever. Runaways will be cancelled, Nightcrawler will be killed off, Stephanie Brown will become nonexistent, and so on. But, even if they grow and change–they never disappear. I can always pick up a Runaways, X-Men or Batgirl comic and there they are.

No matter how terrible Episode VII is (and let’s face it, it will either be incredible or terrible, and regardless it will break the box office–never tell me the odds), no one can ever, ever take away A New Hope, Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi from us. Nor can they refrain us from only showing those movies to our children and teach them that yes, that is all there is. (I am going to be an amazing mom one day.)

Also, Jar Jar Binks won’t be in it. Nuff said.

And I haven’t even gotten started on Indiana Jones and what this deal might mean for a possible 5th film. (“this deal is getting worse all the time!”)

5. If you’re still upset, there’s plenty of Star Wars/Disney mashups, art, and memes on the interwebs that will make you smile.

Whether it’s Andy  written on Han’s boot,  Leia in the lineup of Disney princesses, Stitch as Yoda, or random Disney characters being told that Darth Vader is their father, just keep looking at this amazing mashup art and you’re sure to feel a lot better. (Check them out at io9,  TheFW, Fire Wire, and The Creators Project has not only lesser-circulated art but some great Leia ones as well!)

Anything I missed? And by that of course I mean another bad opportunity to throw in another Star Wars quote… *ahem* Please add in your thoughts below!

Happy Election Day!

No matter who you’re voting for I think we can all agree that either candidate is better than this guy, right? (…Right?)

All joking aside, I hope you are all out voting if you haven’t done so already and exercising one of our greatest rights as a democracy. I feel particularly blessed to grow up in a generation that takes women voting for granted.

 

Arrow: Honor Thy Father review (S01E02)

I really do apologize for being so terrible and behind on these reviews. Life is nuts, and for the next while I’ll just be posting reviews whenever I can, but will be behind until, I dunno, winter break. Such is grad school.

‘Honor Thy Father’ is a good continuation of the pilot. Ollie (Stephen Amsel) continues playing Robin Hood as Arrow, this time going after a big time criminal whom Laurel Lance is also putting on trial. Everyone might be beautiful but no one has a happy family dynamic; there are particularly good chemistry moments between Laurel (Katie Cassidy) and her detective father  (Paul Blackthorn) ; Diggle (David Ramsey) gets some great scenes, and it will be no surprise when he connects the dots and figures out Ollie’s new night job. There are some brief but surprisingly emotional flashbacks to Ollie on the island, which involve him burying his father’s body. Additionally we are introduced to China White and the “Triad,” whom I suspect will be the villain organization of the first season.

China White is an unsurprising addition, as she was the villainess in Green Arrow Year One, a distributor of cocaine on the island. Not sure yet how she works in the Triad, but I am sure that her wig was borrowed from Storm in X-Men. Sigh. The villains are short lived and relatively flat so far but hopefully that will pick up…the reveal about Ollie’s mother at the end was a surprising twist, but I also think we found out too easily– the dialogue was too transparent and being only the second episode, was not nearly enough of a shocker.

More questions: who else totally guessed Ollie was recording that confession? Why wasn’t he wearing that mask makeup from the pilot, which he obviously borrowed in large quantities from Captain Jack Sparrow? And maybe more importantly, does Ollie actually kill all of those henchmen who get the arrow treatment, or is his aim so great that he only wounds them? Some of those shots seem suspiciously close to the heart. Any struggles in the ethics department on that?

The fact that Ollie very likely shoots to kill, and is also coming across as a grade A d-bag to his family, makes it even more important that Ollie becomes likeable in our eyes, and not just as a vengeful archer. That final scene was crucial and hopefully we will see more of Ollie’s core character as the show progresses.

What did you think of the second Arrow episode? Discuss below!!

Stephen Colbert might cameo in The Hobbit.

io9 has reported quite possibly the best news. Ever.

According to io9 as well as Hollywood Reporter, Colbert is visiting the set of The Hobbit, and wide speculation that he might have a cameo has ensued–though it probably won’t be in the first film. Colbert is a huge Lord of the Rings fan (he owns Aragorn’s sword!) and it’s pretty unquestionable that a lot of fans of both his political ‘news’ show and the fantasy trilogy are positively drooling over this news and all the potential shoes Colbert might be filling.

I mean, it’s this:

   

 

Mixed with this:

Your argument is invalid.

 

So, who do you want to see Colbert cameo as in the Hobbit trilogy? An elf? The Eagle King? A dwarf with short but still fabulous hair?

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(Hobbit gifs thanks to adamslevine)