Not much needs to be said here, except this new “Iron Man 3” poster is pretty cool.
And it looks more like an image from the comics than from a Hollywood movie.
The movie opens May 3.
Cool new ‘Iron Man 3’ poster
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Monthly Archives: January 2013
Classic TV: ‘The Time Tunnel’
I was a bit too young when “The Time Tunnel” aired for a single season beginning in 1966 to catch the nuances of the show. Same goes for other shows from the same producer/creator, Irwin Allen, like “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea” (1964) and “Lost in Space” (1965) and “Land of the Giants” (1968).
Well, there were not a lot of nuances to be found in “Lost in Space.” And “Land of the Giants” was in some ways the purest and most fun of the bunch in its story of little people trapped on a planet of giants.
But “The Time Tunnel,” although it only lasted a season on ABC, made a big impression on me.
Maybe it was because of its premise – two scientists from a top-secret government project (one that cost billions of dollars) go back in time and move, out of control, from one pivotal moment in history to the next. (Yes, the premise was duplicated in “Quantum Leap.”)
The show had colorful sets and costumes and stories that seem even more preposterous in retrospect than they do now: As time travelers James Darren and Robert Colbert bounce around from one moment in history – and a few in the future – in one episode to another in the next, they get involved not only in the course of human events but, often, try to change the course of human events.
Let’s think about this for a minute: Is there anything less scientific when you’re time traveling than trying to persuade the captain of the Titanic to cross the ocean just a little further to the south? Humanitarian, maybe; maybe even purely an instance of self-preservation, since the scientists in question had time-jumped onto said “unsinkable” ocean liner. But not very impartially scientific.
Anyway, whole genres of time travel stories have demonstrated that, even if you could change the course of history, you shouldn’t. That wasn’t a big stumbling block on “The Time Tunnel,” however.
The show is available on Hulu.com and is pretty fun to sample.
Some stray observations:
If you want to see all the great sets – the mammoth underground research project, code-named Tic-Toc, buried hundreds of stories below the desert floor – you need only watch the first episode. The sets and special effects, which echo the great Krell laboratories of “Forbidden Planet,” are all out there in the pilot. Then repeated endlessly in later episodes.
There’s a wonderful contingent of actors in the show, from Whit Bissell as the military man in charge of the project to guest-stars like Robert Duvall.
Lee Meriwether, who was an also-also-ran among Catwoman fans for her work in the big-screen “Batman” movie, has a nice role as a scientist here.
Allen set up this show like he did with “Lost in Space,” with a teaser ending that led into the next episode.
The show gave plenty of airtime to stock footage from old movies, the kind of Hollywood economizing that probably made the series possible. Why shoot new footage for a Battle of Little Bighorn sequence when Hollywood has already told General Custer’s story?
The way the time travelers tumbled through time was endlessly amusing and must have seemed as silly to the cast as the “throwing yourself back and forth across the bridge of the Enterprise” scenes were to the cast of “Star Trek.”
Unsung actors: Ron Ely
Ron Ely, we love you despite the broken promises you represent.
More precisely, we love you because you played three of the great characters from geek literature … even if only one was in a well-executed, fully-formed manner.
Ely is most familiar, of course, as “Tarzan” in the TV series of the same name from 1966 to 1968. I haven’t seen one of these shows in decades but my memory of it is that the stories, while not the equal of the fantastic yarns written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, were pretty good. And Ely looked good in a loincloth, as I’m sure female viewers would agree.
And then there was “Doc Savage.”
In 1975, Ely played Clark “Doc” Savage, the epitome of the pulp magazine hero, in a Michael Anderson directed big-screen movie.
“Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze” was awful. Campy and silly and played like the worst episodes of the 1960s “Batman” TV series, it was an incredible disappointment for fans of the books like me.
Then Ely played Superman … kind of.
In the late 1980s/early 1990s syndicated “Superboy” TV series, an episode sent Superboy (Gerard Christopher) to an alternate timeline – dare I say the darkest timeline – where he met a mysterious white-haired man with a familiar “S” curl on his forehead. Yes, this gentleman was Superman, now retired, and he gives Superboy some advice before the show’s normal timeline is restored.
The producers, who had made the Christopher Reeve “Superman” movie but no longer had the rights to the adult superhero, couldn’t credit Ely as playing Superman and Ely didn’t wear the costume. But he definitely was and did a pretty nice job.
Somewhere there’s an alternate timeline where Ely played Superman in a 1960s movie or TV show and then made a serious-minded “Doc Savage” movie.
Definitely not the darkest timeline.
‘Dallas’ returns strong, builds to goodbye to JR
It was, perhaps, inevitable. After battling cancer for years, Larry Hagman – beloved by a couple of generations of soap opera watchers as J.R. Ewing of “Dallas” – succumbed last November, after filming a few episodes of the second season of the “Dallas” revival on TNT.
TNT and producer Cynthia Cidre – the latter responsible for the topnotch return of the series last year – have said they’ll pay homage to not only Hagman but the famous “Who Shot J.R.” storyline from the show’s original run decades ago by killing off J.R. in an upcoming episode.
The passing of the Texas oil man and winking conniver and womanizer will have a big impact on the show. I’m not convinced we’ll see a third season, but that depends on how much viewers judge the series has lost because of Hagman’s passing.
In the meantime, let’s all raise a glass – even if imaginary – of bourbon and branch and enjoy Hagman as J.R. while we still have him. We can start Monday night, when the new season begins.
I’ve seen the first two hours and found them like the best of the first season: Enjoyable soapy goings-on with misunderstandings, back stabbings and intrigue aplenty.
As Bobby, his son Christopher and J.R.’s son John Ross jump-start Ewing Energies, all the characters have some good scenes. John Ross picks up the bride to be at a bachelorette party and beds her to blackmail her father, uttering the immortal phrase, “Love is for pussies.”
Christopher’s bride, Rebecca – revealed last season to be the daughter of longtime Ewing rival Cliff Barnes – returns and a custody battle will soon be brewing over the twin babies she’s carrying.
Bobby continues to investigate the circumstances behind the kidnapping, 20 years earlier, of wife Anne’s child.
And Sue Ellen’s political fortunes very nearly drive her to drink again.
I really, really want this new “Dallas” to succeed, but they might have a tough row to hoe without Hagman. If the producers focus on snappy lines and meaty stories for Josh Henderson as John Ross, they might create a truly worthy follow-up.
It’ll be hard to top Hagman’s character or his delivery, though. Example: A line in the second half of the premiere when J.R. turns to a Barnes family henchman and asks, “How does it feel to be a poodle?”
J.R., we’re going to miss you.
Last thoughts on ‘Last Resort’
“Last Resort,” the good series with an awful name that evoked images of a “Weekend with Bernie”-style 1980s comedy, started off strong. The amazing Andre Braugher led a very good cast in the story of the Colorado, a U.S. Navy nuclear sub that goes renegade after its captain, Marcus Chaplin (Braugher) refuses to nuke Pakistan. The U.S. government reacts badly, to say the least, and makes the Colorado a target and Chaplin is named public enemy number one.
It turns out that something is rotten in Washington, and Chaplin, executive officer Sam (Scott Speedman) and crew hole up on an Indian Ocean island. They’re quickly isolated by a U.S. blockade, set upon by mutineers led by the chief of boat (Robert Patrick, we love you) alternately battle and canoodle with islanders and dally with the Chinese, who offer aid to score points on the global stage.
But after a strong start, the show seemed to grow more and more complicated and shed viewers who probably couldn’t keep up. I watched every episode and I found myself lost at times among all the characters and double-crosses and triple-crosses.
The 13th and what turned out to be final episode, “Controlled Flight Into Terrain,” had been written before producer Shawn Ryan found out the show had been canceled. Ryan took the time to retool the episode, however, jamming in resolutions for the characters and the central plot of the series and bringing the plot to a close.
In a single hour, we saw the resolution of the mutiny, the return of an old enemy from the crew, the climax of the Washington intrigue that served as the backdrop for the show and a homecoming for some of the members of the crew of the Colorado.
“Last Resort” probably bit off more than it could chew, not unlike “Lost” before it. But I can’t fault Ryan and the show for being too ambitious. Viewers didn’t turn out, however. So the boat was permanently beached.
Marvel movies: What we want to see in Phase 3
If you’re only a casual fan of the movies made from Marvel comics in the past four or so years, you might not be familiar with the “phases” that the company is moving through as it brings its complex universe to the big screen.
Phase 1, as dubbed by Marvel, began in 2008 with “Iron Man,” moving through solo adventures for the Hulk, Thor and Captain America and culminating in last summer’s “The Avengers.”
“Iron Man 3” kicks off Phase 2 this May, with “Thor: The Dark World,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” to follow, and Marvel films honcho Kevin Feige has indicated that series will sew the seeds for the “Avengers” sequel in 2015, even if moviegoers don’t recognize those seeds at the time. (Talk about a crazy Easter egg hunting challenge!)
“Ant-Man” is already on the schedule for late 2015, a few months after the “Avengers” sequel, and would kick off Phase 3. Marvel films honcho Kevin Feige hinted recently that “Dr. Strange” might also follow in Phase 3.
Remember that Hawkeye was introduced in “Thor,” so it’s possible we’ll see more Marvel characters introduced in Phase 2.
But here’s what we want to see in Phase 3:
Diversity. Luke Cage and the Black Panther are two longtime Avengers who would not only be great additions to the team but bring needed color to the movie line-up.
Women, including Wasp! She was a founding member of the Avengers, for pete’s sake. It would make sense that she’s introduced in the “Ant-Man” movie.
More Hulk. Even better, a Hulk/Iron Man Marvel Superhero Team-Up.
Big and small. A good mix of personal, high-stakes stories – which “Iron Man 3” appears to be, as much as any Marvel superhero movie can be – with the grand-scale action plots we know from Marvel.
Dare I say it: Crossover with characters whose big-screen rights are owned by other companies, namely “Fantastic Four,” “X-Men” and “Spider-Man.” Surely with lots of money to be made this can be worked out, right?
Come on, Marvel. Make it happen!
Six things we want to see from JJ Abrams’ ‘Star Wars’ movie
Okay, everybody got those “Star Trek” vs. “Star Wars” and lens flare jokes out of their system yesterday. We still don’t have any idea what to expect when “Alias” and “Lost” creator and “Star Trek” reboot director J.J. Abrams makes “Star Wars Episode VII” for 2015 release.
But we can throw out a few things we would like to see and don’t want.
No repeats of the mistakes from the prequel trilogy. With the Great Beard of the Galaxy, George Lucas, out of the way, we can say goodbye (lord, please) to Gungans, trade routes, tax protests, clunky dialogue, wooden acting, awful child actors and movies that were “ooh pretty” but frustrating for all their faults.
The Return of the Jedi. Mark Hamill is still around. He’s expressed an interest in appearing in the movie, as has his on-screen sis, Carrie Fisher. It would be totally appropriate to introduce new, younger characters. But if Hamill can pull it off, it would be great to see him in Alec Guinness-style elder Jedi action. Having said that …
A strong female protagonist. Abrams gave us a kick-ass female hero in “Alias.” Not so much in “Lost,” which started out strong with the Kate character but kind of petered out. But Abrams, like Joss Whedon, can give us a woman to root for if anyone can.
A mix of the personal and the galaxy-spanning. No movie did this better than “The Empire Strikes Back.” I’m sure Abrams, a fan, has seen “Empire” many times. He and screenwriter Michael Arndt surely will take some cues from it.
Great music. John Williams’ original score is timeless. What we wouldn’t give for that lightning to strike again.
And the impossible. Something for everyone, “Star Trek” and “Star Wars” fans, young and old, geeks and nerds, dogs and cats living together, to enjoy.
And we’re back. Maybe.
Yesterday, like several billion other people with access to the Interwebs, I tried to post some thoughts on the news that director/producer J.J. Abrams, who rebooted the “Star Trek” franchise, was reported to be directing the next movie in the rebooted “Star Wars” franchise.
Not only didn’t all of that blog entry post, but something – the photo of Abrams I used, the lens flare joke, something – caused the blog to go south. A week’s worth of posts disappeared.
Right now it looks like once I deleted the Abrams post the previous posts came back. Which is great, because I didn’t look forward to reposting several items.
You get what you pay for, I suppose. Word Press blogs – at least the type I have – are free, after all.
It’s the end of the world and we feel fine
No, this isn’t another of those Mayan calendar stories a few weeks late. It’s a quick look at the trend in end of the world movies and TV.
For most of the pop culture world, “The Walking Dead” kicked off the end of the world, zombie style. The AMC series returns for the second half of its so-far gripping third season on Feb. 10.
I’m feeling pretty confident that the show will give us eight more good episodes documenting the most detailed zombie apocalypse so far.
I’m more uneasy about “World War Z,” the big-screen version of Max Brooks’ excellent episodic novel. The Brad Pitt-starring movie, due out June 21, seems to bear little resemblance to the book based only on what we’ve seen from the teaser trailer. There’s no character in the book comparable to Pitt’s government zombie apocalypse expert. The book makes readers tough out the end of the world and beyond.
“Warm Bodies” is yet another take on the zombie story with a zombie – I guess we could consider him the spiritual descendant of “Bud” the trained zombie from “Day of the Dead” – who, post apocalypse, is so enamored of a living girl that he begins to revert to human.
I’m kind of amused but skeptical about “This is The End,” the end-of-the-world comedy featuring Seth Rogen, Danny McBride and a host of young comedic actors, most of them apparently playing themselves. Judging by the trailer, this looks to be a blue end of the world.
I’m enthusiastically looking forward to Edgar Wright’s “The World’s End,” Wright’s take on an epic pub crawl featuring his regulars Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Martin Freeman. I don’t know another single thing about the movie but I want to see it now.
Classic horror movie: ‘The Abominable Dr. Phibes’
The 1960s saw Vincent Price, who had appeared in films at the tail end of the 1930s and onward, experience the beginnings of a second life at the movies. He had made the popular 3-D movie “House of Wax” in 1953, but it was still a few years before he delivered back-to-back-to-back horror hits: “The Fly” in 1958. “House on Haunted Hill” in 1959 and more. Not to mention – although I will – a series of Edgar Allen Poe adaptations for American International Pictures in the 1960s.
So by the time “The Abominable Dr. Phibes” was released in 1971. Price was something of a horror institution. Like Boris Karloff before him, he had transcended the role of horror movie actor and become a personality.
So the Phibes movie, and its sequel, “Dr. Phibes Rises Again” – with their revenge-driven plots, gory killings and campy trappings – might have seemed a little out there, but Price could be counted on by American International Pictures to deliver an audience of horror fans.
Keep in mind, the Phibes movies came out at the tail end of a particular era in horror films. Within just a half-dozen years, John Carpenter’s “Halloween” and its many imitators changed horror movies forever. (I’m deliberately overlooking “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” in 1974 because the effectiveness of the film was considered a fluke, a very nearly dirty pleasure, like the porn films that flirted with social acceptance at the same time.)
The first Phibes movie acquainted us with the character Price would immortalize: He played Anton Phibes, a physician who was apparently burned to death in a car accident as he rushed to the side of his wife in emergency surgery.
Phibes survived, but was horribly disfigured. His wife did not survive her surgery. Now, years later, in 1925, Phibes and an always-silent assistant, Vulnavia (Virginia North), murder, one by one, the surgical team who Phibes believed botched his wife’s operation. Phibes’ revenge comes in the form of Biblical plagues: One doctor is stung to death by bees, while a nurse is eaten by locusts, for example.
As one of the doctors, played by Joseph Cotton, and Scotland Yard inspectors try to track him down, Phibes enacts his revenge and camps it up with Vulnavia and a clockwork orchestra even as his wife (a beautiful corpse played by cult movie actress Caroline Munro) awaits one final voyage with her beloved husband.
As oddball as “The Abominable Dr. Phibes” is, there’s a classic and classy feel to the movie because the murders are accomplished through such elaborate and arcane means. Within a few years, Michael Myers and Jason Vorhees and a host of other killers would chop and impale their victims and it all became so very ho-hum.
You might roll your eyes or even shake your head when Phibes enacts Biblical revenge on someone. But you won’t think, “Well, I’ve seen that before.”
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