We might be a little late to the game on this one, but I hadn’t seen them before today and I felt they were still worth sharing.

FOX released a couple of publicity stills from the film and they give us a look at director Timur Bekmambetov at work and Benjamin Walker at two different periods in Lincoln’s life.

I’ve not read the book, but I’m told it’s incredible and I am pretty excited for this movie.

Though his face in the Gettysburg shot (is that Gettysburg?) looks a little rubbery to me… Anybody else think so? According to IMDb, this film is set to be released a year from Wendesday, June 22, 2012.

I’ve heard a lot of suggestions on ways the Green Lantern movie could’ve been improved. I thought I had heard them all. Then, an email from former Congressman Alan Grayson suggested the film could’ve been improved by including an exchange from Green Lantern #76. A (poor) African-American man approaches Green Lantern and Green Arrow and asks them why, if they spend so much time fighting for people with orange, purple, and blue skins why he doesn’t do anything for people like him.

This exchange obviously rubbed off on the young Alan Grayson, who told us he wrote this particular email blast himself. “That particular issue was a real breakthrough. . . connecting what teenagers like me were experiencing in the world.” Grayson also has taste. Green Lantern #76 was awarded the comics equivalent of an Oscar or Emmy for the best story that year.

Grayson admitted he read this run on Green Lantern for several years, one which included Green Lantern and the Robin-Hood-esque Green Arrow fighting slumlords, drug dealers, and your typical aliens and Nazis. In fact, writers Dennis O’Neil and Neal Adams are credited with bringing a new social conscience to comics, and saving a title (Green Lantern) from cancellation due to lackluster sales, revitalizing it with new, fresh storylines and relevance.

When I contacted Denny O’Neil about whether he expected his story to inspire so many, or even a future Congressman, he was completely modest. “No, I wasn’t anticipating anyone being inspired. I might have hoped for that, but it seemed a lot to really expect.  I mean…it was just a comic book,  As to how I feel…A little amazed.” Adding to Congressman Grayson specifically, “I hope our stuff does you some good.”

Grayson as a Congressman was -usmvYOPfco”>know for his terse and bombastic rhetoric, a quality he may have learned from comics. His social conscience, obviously, was also impacted by this. “It’s important enough for me to remember it in 2011 and write about it.”

This clash of populism and superheroism that is depicted in the issue is so iconic, I would agree with the Congressman that it was what was missing from the recent film, though O’Neil gracefully reminds us about the Ryan Reynolds vehicle, “there’s nothing wrong with turning out a good popcorn movie.”

I asked O’Neil about what issues someone today could confront Green Lantern with, and he had several ideas:
“A legislative process that seems to be hopelessly broken.
Global warming.
Exploitation of kids.
Abuse of power.”

I could not agree more. And this is exactly the message Grayson picked up on and used in his plea for help: that those in power, if confronted about the lack of jobs or health care or the numerous other problems in our country would be forced, when asked to account for their selfish actions by We the People, would have to answer. . “I. . .  can’t. . .”

Grayson joins a select cadre of political comic book fans, such as Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, a huge Batman fan who both made a cameo in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight and wrote the preface for Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Strikes Back. Both Leahy and Grayson embrace their heroes’ ethics and their propensity for heroic words. There must also be something in the zeitgeist about superheroes intersecting with politics, as evidenced by Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell’s State of the City Address where he compared Austin to the Green Lantern.

Grayson also outed himself not only as having excellent taste in comics but an understanding of the important historical context. He correctly pointed out that it was this run on Green Lantern that challenged the authority of the comics code. By dealing with heroin addiction by Green Arrow’s sidekick Speedy in the Snowbirds Don’t Fly arc, it forced a total rewrite of the previously restrictive comic code created in the 1950s. Grayson even characterized the code by saying “There may have have been a particular degree of censorship” in it. That would be an understatement.

While this collection from childhood has become “a bunch of stuff in storage,” adding that if they ever get valuable enough he may consider pulling them out or selling them. Well, Congressman Grayson, it may be time to pull out your old copy of Green Lantern #76 – ones in good condition go for $150 – $300 on Ebay and one copy sold for five figures last year at auction. No matter the dollar value of a particular book, this social awareness is priceless. Please read the Congressman’s unedited email below and feel free to contribute to him.

Also, special thanks to GraphicPolicy, a great DC-based comics and politics blog who also covered this story.

###

Dear Andy,

The movie Green Lantern opened on Friday, to mixed reviews.  Maybe the reviews would have been better if the movie had included this powerful exchange, from Green Lantern #76:

African-American Man: I’ve been readin’ about you . . . How you work for the blue skins . . . and how on a planet someplace you helped out the orange skins . . . and you done considerable for the purple skins! Only there’s skins you never bother with – the black skins!  I want to know . . . how come?!  Answer me that, Mr. Green Lantern!

Green Lantern: I  . . . can’t . . . .

I may never have the chance to talk to George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, or any of the other Masters of the Universe who led and misled our country for eight long years.  Nor may I ever have the chance to speak to Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, Rush Limbaugh, or any of the other savage right-wing loons who want to finish the job that Bush et al. started.  But if I could, I might say:

Me: I’ve been readin’ about you . . . How you work for multinational corporations like Big Oil. . . .  And how you say you built all those roads and schools and bridges in some country in Asia.   And in some other country in the Middle East someplace you got rid of some dictator.  Only there’s one country you never bother with – America!  I want to know . . . how come?!  Answer me that, Mr. Flag-Waiving Patriot!

Them: I  . . . can’t . . . .

Well, I can answer that.  For a generation now, we have seen the heartless, callous erosion and destruction of all the things that make you a member of the middle class in America:

A job.

A home.

A car.

The chance to see a doctor when you are sick.

A pension or retirement account.

Social Security and Medicare.

And we’ve seen them replaced by endless war, falling home values, no pensions, lower wages, and now what Karl Marx called a “reserve army of the unemployed” – to keep wages down forever.

Even after only two years in office, as one out of 435 in the House, I can point to a lot of things that I did to preserve, protect and expand the middle class in America, and to help those of us who were falling through the cracks.

I look at our so-called leaders on the other side of the aisle, and I see nothing like that.  Only a perverse delight in eliminating programs that help my fellow Americans in need.  They’ll lead us, all right – they’ll lead us straight to ruin.

The next time you see one of them — at a town hall meeting, in their plush offices, or just on the street – ask them this:  “What have you done to help the people?  Answer me that!”

If they’re honest, they’ll say what Green Lantern said:  “I can’t.”

Courage,

Alan Grayson

In brightest day,
In blackest night,
No evil shall escape my sight.
Let those who worship evil’s might,
Beware my power: Green Lantern’s Light.

Paid for and Authorized by the Committee to Elect Alan Grayson

After three years of waiting we are finally getting an official U.S. release date (and official English translation) for Naruto Shippuden the Movie 2: Bonds (Naruto Shippuden: Kizuna in Japanese). The film premiered in Japan in August of 2008 and received excellent reviews from fans. (Remember, if you want more awesome anime to come to the U.S., do your part and see this movie in theaters in October or buy it later this year on DVD!)

“The 2nd NARUTO SHIPPUDEN movie finds the Hidden Leaf Village under attack from a mysterious group of flying ninja! Will Naruto and his friends be able to stop this new threat from the Sky Ninja from the thought-to-be-destroyed Land of Sky?!”

Leading up to the event, Viz Media is hosting an awesome 25th anniversary contest all summer long with tons of prizes. Anime fans will definitely want to go over to Viz’s website and enter this one:

“For our 25th year, we’re paying homage to the biggest heroes in anime with the Heroes of Anime Sweepstakes. Every month this summer we’ll award one lucky fan the latest Bleach or Naruto video games, or the latest DVD set from the biggest names in anime today. Get your entry in by September for a chance at winning a 16 GB iPad 2 with a month of Hulu+ (great for watching the latest episodes of Bleach and Naruto) or the Heroes of Anime Sweepstakes Grand Prize: a trip for two to the Naruto Shippuden the Movie: Bonds premeire in New York, NY.”

Sounds pretty awesome to me! Learn more about Naruto Shippuden the Movie: Bonds over at the official Japanese website or at the wikipedia page (Warning: Wikipedia = SPOILERS!). If you’re behind on the Naruto Shippuden series, go watch up to episode 220 at Viz’s website.

MAD Magazine has been a staple for satire and parody for over half a century. Recently, the usual gang of idiots started up their own blog. It has a lot of what you’d expect, past highlights, current stuff, and  random idiocy. One thing I expected was previews of the current issue, and they didn’t disappoint. What did surprise me (in a good way), is the way they’re going about it.

This month’s issue, #510 features one of MAD’s famous movie parodies, featuring who else, Green Lantern. I think this is interesting in a couple of ways, first it’s nice to know that Warner as a company doesn’t have a problem with making fun of itself, seeing as they own MAD, DC, and of course Warner Pictures, so it’s a trifecta of incestuous humor. The peerless artwork of Tom Richmond also sets this apart. Have a sneak peek at The Green Lunkhead!

While this is really cool (the background Lunkheads being the most inspired), the MAD blog also offers a rare look at the original pencils for this double page spread. While it’s pretty similiar, there is a pretty significant difference in “Hack Boredom’s” ring construct…

Oh MAD, how I wish you were ballsy enough to use the one-fingered salute in the final artwork. MAD #510 is due on shelves June 29th, reserve yours today!

This is one of my favorite chapters for a couple of reasons, and as usual it boils down to the fighting and the cliffhanger. Last episode, Gail was the one in peril, not Captain America. The time bomb planted in her plane could go off at any time! Can Captain America fight off the Scarab’s goons in time to warn her? Well, probably, but who cares? The brawl has an extra air of urgency to it, and it’s choreographed really well. It’s also a tiny bit slapstick-y, what with the guy getting slammed onto the rolling dolly, but again, who cares? This isn’t the type of movie you watch to painstakingly analyze every moment. You pop it on, maybe turn down the lights and become a kid again for 15 minutes. Let’s do that now, and together let’s watch Chapter 9 of Captain America: Triple Tragedy!

This week’s supplement is yet another chapter poster. I really like these, even though they are all similar aside from the screen inset and the chapter title. I hope you all like them too! Until next week, Keep your flag waving and your spirits high!

This movie looks incredible. The Muppets have always been one of my favorite things in the world and I will be first in line for this movie. It looks like a return to form for them. And the interiors of the old Muppet Theatre look sooooo good.

I really, really, really can’t wait for this.

As we wait, let’s talk about who your favorite Muppet is. I might have to go with Kermit… But there’s so many I love. Lew Zealand is pretty damned notable….

What about you?

This year has been dubbed the “Year of the Geek” with regards to the blockbuster movie season. With Thor, Super 8, and X-Men: First Class under our belts already and Captain America: The First Avenger and Cowboys and Aliens just around the corner there is no lack of choices for whatever your geeky tastes are. Entering the geeky fray this weekend is Warner Bros. and DC’s Green Lantern – a rare foray for WB and DC into their relatively untouched roster of superheroes aside from Batman and Superman. So how does Green Lantern stack up? Unfortunately not that well . . .

Perhaps where this film suffers the most is a rushed, and undeveloped story and a gross under-use of some potentially interesting characters. The film really jumps right in to bestowing the power ring to Hal Jordan who is shortly after inheriting a power ring from the dying alien, Abin Sur, is whisked away to the Green Lantern base-planet of Oa. Here we are introduced to three Green Lanterns we will see shockingly little of after they attempt to train Hal Jordan in the ways of being a member of the Green Lantern Corps. After becoming frustrated and beaten down by his would-be trainers Kilowog and Thaal Sinestro, Hal simply gives up and returns home. Yes, after less than one day spent traveling to Oa, learning about the Green Lanterns, and getting frustrated because he can’t immediately wield his ring as well as some the the Corps’ best members, Hal Jordan returns to Earth and gives up. Running parallel to Hal’s story, we have Hector Hammond, a scientist and son of a U.S. Senator, become exposed to some remnants of the yellow, physical manifistation of the power of Fear, Parallax, when he is summoned to study the body of the deceased Abin Sur. This of course putshim on track to becoming the film’s main – but relatively weak – antagonist. The film whisks along at a steady pace as it desperately attempts to set up some romance between Hal Jordan and Carol Ferris and present scenarios on Earth that forces Jordan to don his ring and become a hero – including a crashing helicopter and an increasingly crazy Hector Hammond drunk from the power and influence of Parallax. It’s not long before our hero prevails in a relatively anti-clamactic showdown with Parallax and he is accepted by the Green Lanterns as a formidable member.

Nearly all of the main characters aside from perhaps Hal Jordan himself suffer from a lack of character development. Ryan Reynolds does a decent enough job as Hal Jordan, and we do see his character grow a bit over the course of the movie from being a brash and arrogant pilot, to being quite humbled, to finding strength and confidence in himself once again by the end of the film. Blake Lively as Carol Ferris wasn’t terrible casting, but does little more than serve as a love interest for Hal – though, she does have one of the funniest lines in the movie in a scene that I don’t want to completely ruin, but it involves the iconic (and not really effective in “real life”) way in which classic superheroes have hidden their identity over the years. Peter Sarsgaard doesn’t get much to do in the film as Hector Hammond aside from being crazy on screen and screaming a lot. Frankly, I thought Hammond was an incredibly one-dimensional villain that the writers tried to provide some humanity for with an unconvincing troubled relationship with his father and being “in love” with Carol Ferris – things that supposedly helped attribute to his going insane and evil, but fell flat. As a villain, Hammond never seemed that menacing or much of a threat.

Perhaps the most grossly underused character of the film is Mark Strong’s Sinestro. I really enjoyed Strong’s portrayal of the character but he was given shockingly little to do in the film. Most of his screen time is spend standing in front of the Green Lanterns giving a speech, or standing in fron of the Guardians giving a speech. There are a few scenes in which he’s given more to do, but they are rather brief. The scene in which he attempts to help train Hal is pretty strong as he not only physically pummels this new human Green Lantern, but also completely demoralizes him while doing so. There was obviously a lot of contempt for Hal since he is now the bearer of Sinestro’s mentor’s ring and it would have been nice to see more development in the relationship between Hal and Sinestro – especially for anyone who is familiar with the comics and knows where the Sinestro/Hal thing is heading. In this film, the two interact very little and it seems the progression of Sinestro’s disdain for Hal to his respecting of Hal happens too suddenly and with little impact since their relationship wasn’t really expanded upon.

There was also little use of some other familiar Green Lanterns that could have played a more expanded role in the film, such as Tomar-re and Kilowog – perhaps two of the more recognizable Green Lanterns from the source material, especially Kilowog. It seems as though they made their brief appearances, and then were essentially forgotten about until the end of the film.

As far as the special effects go, this was one of the aspects of the film I thoroughly enjoyed. I was quite concerned about the full-CG Green Lantern suits, but I thought the fit the characters well. Each Green Lantern donned a suit that was clearly a Green Lantern uniform, but varied a little depending on the wearer’s physical appearance – for example Tomar-re is a “fish-like” alien, there for you can see some scale details worked into his suit. The power ring manifestations were also well done.I was concerned how well they would translate on screen with the possibility of looking too cartoony, but the folks working on the visual effects for this film seemed to have taken a lot of time on the look and feel of all the CG in this film and it definitely paid off. This is a film that I’m sure most expect to be heavy on the computer generated special effects, frankly, it almost had to be, and it seems the studio allowed to ample budget to make sure the effects didn’t look cheap or too cheesy.

As for the climax of the movie and the battle between Hal Jordan and Parallax, I felt there could have been more. What was included wasn’t bad by any means, and it was quite exciting, but it seemed all too brief and Parallax for supposedly being such a large threat to the Green Lanterns as whole was fairly easily disposed of by such a new, human member of the Corps. It was fun though to see Hal Jordan truly become a Green Lantern and have confidence in the power he weilds and take it to a giant yellowy-brown glob of pure fear.

Some of this may sound a bit nit picky, but I hope none of it comes off as fan-boy anger. In the interest of full-disclosure my superhero “expertise” (if you could even call it that) tends to lean towards the world of Marvel superheroes. I’m not super familiar with Hal Jordan and the Green Lanterns aside from knowing the basics from Justice League cartoons and some collected storied in trade-paperback form, so I felt like I was able to go into this film with little expectations and an unbiased view on the character. The fact is, I didn’t hatethis film at all, but I also didn’t think it was that great. Most of my frustrations come from seeing some really good potential in this film and Warner Bros.’ inability to expand and capitalize on that. There were numerous opportunities for the script to expand on some character development and relationships, weave plot lines together better, and really produce some incredible action and visuals with all of the freedom that the Green Lantern power ring allows for. Ultimately though, the entire film felt quite rushed and at times just downright didn’t make sense on a few occasions.

I can’t recommend just skipping Green Lantern all together, but I wouldn’t recommend rushing out opening weekend either. It’s great to see DC and Warner Bros. exploring other heroes from the DC roster and I hope they continue to do so instead of just dipping into the Batman and Superman well over and over again. There just seems to be some of that “magic” lacking that Marvel has seemed to be able to tap into with the likes of the Iron Man films and the universe they’ve created that’s leading up to The Avengers. I honestly hope WB and DC can find their own stride with their films so we can see other superhero greats get the big screen treatment, but if Green Lantern is any indication of how they plan on handling these films, there is definitely room for improvement.

Just a month before the last installment of the “Harry Potter” movie series hits the big screen, the super amazing trailer for the final movie hits YouTube. Unlike the “>previous tralier which was released a couple of months ago, this trailer shows us all of the carnage and darkness that are going to happen in the final installment, including the legendary final battle at Hogwarts.

I don’t know about you guys, but I am PUMPED.

With last year’s Batman XXX: A Porn Parody, it was proven that you can titillate and entertain, while being extremely faithful to source material. Since the success of that movie, there has been a veritable explosion (no pun intended) of Superhero porn parodies. Some have been better than others (not that I’d know), but with the upcoming Spider-Man XXX, hopes are high for another faithful adaptation due to the direction of Axel Braun, he who helmed last year’s Batman. The people at Vivid entertainment were kind enough to send along a rough cut of the opening credits and the official poster for the film. Electro aside, it’s pretty faithful to the Raimi movies.

Well, faithful in style, at least. I’m really surprised that they’d include the Black Widow and not the Black Cat. Well, if nothing else, Spider-Man will be sure to shoot a sticky substance from his body, and there’ll probably be some web-slinging too. What do you all think of Superhero porn? Is it sexy, or just silly?

The road to Ghostbusters 3 continues to be a rollercoaster ride. The latest news comes directly from Sony at the Licensing International Expo. In the Licensing Trade magazine was the following spread:

The blurb of interest reads as follows:

“…plus Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) has a licensing program targeting the Ghostbusters core fan base of the relaunch of the movie franchise in 2013.”

What does this mean? Sony is still invested in making some money out of the Ghostbusters franchise. This isn’t a green light for the third movie, but it does mean they are pushing forward with it. The term “relaunch” is kind of interesting. Does this mean if Bill doesn’t hop on board they just move on with a whole new crew? Or am I looking into things too far? Sound off below!

Via: Toys and Gadgets