Deadpool Finally Confirmed for 2016 Release
I don't know how or when it happened, but Deadpool has been one of the most popular Marvel characters at every comic book convention I've been to over the past five years (and perhaps even longer). Given the post-modern, metafictional nature of the character, his sleek and modern character design, and all-around hysterical characterization, I can understand why there are no less than ten amazing Deadpool cosplayers whenever I venture out to enjoy my fandom. The best Deadpool cosplayers are the ones that combine him with other characters/properties, which may seem weird to non-fans, but definitely fits within the nature of the character.
I say all this because, following his appearance in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a spin-off film starring Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool was supposed to come out shortly after that film was released. Unfortunately, it was a hodgepodge of everything terrible with comic book films, and that kind of derailed the entire X-Men film franchise until 2011's X-Men: First Class righted the ship. Nevertheless, a Ryan Reynolds-led Deadpool film faced its own problems, namely the fact that a successful Deadpool film would have to be rated R, something most comic book films would never aspire towards due to the guaranteed loss in box office returns when compared to a PG-13 film.
Hopefully, Fox has figured out exactly what to do as they announced yesterday that the Deadpool spin-off has officially been greenlit with a 2016 release date targeted. Tim Miller, who has been working on the project since 2009, is still officially on board as director, but there's no word on whether Reynolds is still on board. However, as he has been championing the film for years, it's only a matter of time and scheduling before his casting is official, as well. The film's announcement comes a few months after a CGI test scene was leaked showcasing what a Deadpool film would tonally be like. You can see that below.
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[via /Film]
[Weekly Netflix Fix] Bill & Ted Are Back... Kinda
Despite being in the works for almost four years, the third film in the Bill & Ted franchise has yet to materialize. Can you really picture Keanu Reeves playing Ted again after all of his years of cynical, introspective characters? Neither can I, which is exactly why the third Bill & Ted film needs to come out. Thankfully, the first film in the franchise, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, is now on Netflix Instant. Everybody should watch it to show how popular and viable the franchise is, further pushing the odds of the third film coming out. Other recommendations this week include the James McAvoy-led Filth, Hey Arnold! The Movie, Le Week-End, and Your Sister's Sister.
You can check out the last week's new Netflix Instant additions below.
- Dennis Miller: America
- Filth
- Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration
- The Moment
- Scents and Sensibility
- Crash & Bernstein: Season 2
- Siberian Education
- A Single Man
- The Galapagos Affair: Satan Came to Eden
- Hate Story
- Personal: Grant & Calvin Hill
- Project Wild Thing
- Rage
- Who Is Dayani Cristal?
- Yamla Pagla Deewana 2
- Agnès Varda: From Here to There
- Digimon Xros Wars: Season 1
- The Blacklist
- Power Rangers Super Megaforce
- The Blacklist: Season 1
- All Is Lost
- Big Top Pee-Wee
- Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
- El Fuente
- Hey Arnold! The Movie
- Honor Diaries
- I Am Divine
- Kid Cannabis
- Le Week-End
- Refuge
- Rigor Mortis
- Roman Holiday
- El Fuente: Season 1
- El Fuente: Season 2
- El Fuente: Season 3
- Ben 10: Season 4
- El Fuente: Season 4
- Trailer Park Boys: Season 8
- True Grit (1969)
- Twisted
- Your Sister's Sister
SanDisk is Making a 512GB SD Card
While I'm usually on top of clearing my SD card after every time I shoot, there have been a few times where I'll just upload photos to my computer, but then forget to clear them out before the next event. Of course, I'll be a few photos in before I realize that I'm near capacity. Sure, I bring back-up SD cards, but they're all of different sizes and speeds and not very practical ways of shooting photos... but I digress. The fact of the matter at hand is this: SD cards can get ridiculously pricey for storage options that aren't even all that much when taking into account shooting RAW photos and videos. Especially with the growth and ease of creating video content, the typical 256GB card isn't gonna cut a full day of photo and video.
SanDisk understands the struggle and will be releasing a 512GB SD card very shortly. The new cards also boast a faster upload speed, topping out at 95 MB/s, making file transfer just that much faster when you're on the go. With SD cards having a theoretical capacity of 2TB, 512GB brings us a quarter of the way to that limit. Unfortunately, the new cards will retail for roughly $800.
[via PetaPixel]
Venom Writer/Director Wants to Make a Darker Film Than The Amazing Spider-Man
Despite how "edgy" Sony has tried to make the The Amazing Spider-Man films, they're still really tame affairs when compared to Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight films. Granted, Batman is inherently a darker character than Spider-Man, but good 'ol Spidey has experienced his fair share of shitty situations. Nevertheless, the latest films have been bright, optimistic films (a few dark moments notwithstanding). When Sony announced they were going to create a plethora of Spider-Man spin-off films, obviously the first to be confirmed was one focusing on one of Spider-Man's most popular nemeses, Venom.
Writer/director Alex Kurtzman recently spoke to MTV about his vision for the Venom film:
Well, Venom is sort of the flip side in that there are certain lines that Spider-Man won’t cross because he’s Peter Parker and Peter Parker will only do certain things and Venom is an entirely different character. Venom, in a weird way, is the representation of every line that will get crossed. He’s a much darker character. I wouldn’t even really say more complicated because I think they’re both very complicated characters, but I think the attraction for me to Venom is the idea that you can do things that you can’t do with Spider-Man.
Obviously, with a character that is more physically daunting/harrowing than Spider-Man, he'll be doing things that Spider-Man never could. In saying that, there's this weird standard I've noticed with comics that the bigger the character, the darker they tend to be. Nevertheless, I could see Venom being not only more action-packed than The Amazing Spider-Man, but also carry a horror aspect with it. The film's tone also depends on which character is portraying Venom: the classic Eddie Brock, the original Scorpion, Mac Gargan, or the current Venom, Flash Thompson?
At least one thing's clear: Venom can't be any worse than the character's depiction in the god awful Spider-Man 3.
[via /Film]
New Batmobile Fully Revealed for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Quick new post here. Ever since DC and Warner Bros. announced that Ben Affleck would portray Bruce Wayne/Batman in the upcoming Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice last year, fanboys and film fans alike have been clamoring for any information they can get out of the film. While some of it has been kind of asinine (who cares of Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor will or won't have hair?), there has been some substantial information leaked over the past year. Whether this falls into the former or latter category, however, is entirely up to you.
Recently, the first official look at Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice's Batmobile was revealed. Keen eyes will notice that the vehicle is a solid mix of the Nolanverse's military-styled tumbler with the rough, geometrical edges of the earlier Batman films. Personally, I think it looks a bit too alien, fitting more into something more sci-fi like Halo or Destiny. Then again, I've gone on record as being entirely negative towards the DC slate of films, so I could be a tad bit biased.
[via Collider]
Apple Officially Announces Apple Watch
Apple confirmed rumors today by officially announcing the existence of the Apple Watch. Much like similar wearable tech gadgets like Samsung's Galaxy Gear, the Apple Watch must be synced to an iPhone to work. As just announced, it'll be compatible with the new iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, but also with the last generation of iPhones (iPhone 5, iPhone 5S, iPhone 5C). The Apple Watch will start at $349 and will be available in early 2015.
As stated, the Apple Watch will work as a complementary device to users' iPhones. The Apple Watch has a built-in gyroscope to help with GPS and movement detection, a heart rate sensor for fitness fans, and a new "Taptic Engine" that will allow the watch face to read gestures, allow movement through screens and menus, and more (such as drawing quick doodles to send to friends).
The watch itself comes in two different sizes, three different finishes, and six different straps to further customize the device for users (some of which can be seen in the gallery below). Honestly, I see no point in wearable tech that are required to sync to phones; why not just pull your phone out of your pocket? Granted, using your watch to do things is pretty cool and secret agent-like, but really... is it worth the extra $350 on top of the $200+ you're spending on a new iPhone 6? We'll be hearing more about the Apple Watch from now until the device's release in early 2015.
[Images via Mashable]
iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus Ship on September 19
During Apple's keynote speech today, they officially announced the upcoming iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus as the successors to last year's iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C. With a proper numerical upgrade, the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus are Apple's best iPhones to date. The biggest change to the iPhones are the sizes. Whereas the iPhone 5S had a 4" screen, the iPhone 6 features a 4.7" screen, with the iPhone 6 Plus going even bigger with a full 5.5" screen. The new iPhones are also thinner than ever, going from the 5s's 7.6mm to the iPhone 6's 6.9mm and iPhone 6 Plus's 7.1mm. The new iPhones also feature stronger cameras with 8 megapixels, 2.2 apertures, and new sensors that allow better focusing.
The iPhone 6 starts at $199 for 16GB, $299 for 64GB, and $399 for 128GB with a two-year contract; the iPhone 6 Plus starts at $299 for 32GB, $399 for 64GB, and $499 for 128GB with a two-year contract. We'll be back for more from Apple's speech today, including their official reveal of the Apple Watch.
[Images via Mashable]
Kevin Smith's Tusk Has a Medical Marijuana Promotional Tie-In
This might be a first. Kevin Smith's upcoming horror film, Tusk, will have a branded medical marijuana tie-in to promote the film. Tusk's distributors, A24, has teamed up with the Los Angeles-based medical marijuana dispensary Buds & Roses to create two new strains of marijuana, the aptly titled "Mr. Tusk" and "White Walrus." In addition to teaming up with Buds & Roses, A24 has also teamed up with The World's Best Ever to create packaging to further promote the film. The limited edition strains and packaging will only be available until September 26th. The World's Best Ever will also have a contest starting tomorrow for patients to show off their best "walrus breath" photos on Instagram. You can find more details on that on their website.
As off as the promotion sounds, it kind of fits, given Smith's long-lasting support of weed. With acceptance of marijuana growing more and more popular, it was only a matter of time before film studios began reaching out to dispensaries to promote their films, especially those that are heavily associated with the drug. Remember, you only have a few short weeks before Mr. Tusk and White Walrus go up in smoke, so get on it, smokers.
