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Though Thor is the story of a god who crushes his enemies with a magical hammer, Kenneth Branagh's Thor movie is set in a scientific universe. Or so it seemed from footage we saw this weekend, especially of Destroyer. Branagh, whose previous films include Frankenstein and Dead Again, is known for over-the-top theatricality and an emphasis on acting in his films. The 3D Thor is no exception, especially since the director says he loved Thor growing up and has even worked to include different versions of the first Avenger in his film. Though the hero's iconic hammer is pure Jack Kirby, Branagh assured the audience that "there are some Donald Blake touches" too. Natalie Portman plays Jane Foster, a minor character in the comics who has a very large role in the movie. She called her character a rare "real, frazzled, grounded female scientist - not the low-cut lab coat and sexy glasses kind of thing." She added that she was happy to get back in front of a green screen with an actor-oriented director like Branagh, because "working with green screens is a skill - it should be something you learn in acting school." Chris Hemsworth is the perfect physical type to play the god of thunder, and when we saw the sizzle reel from the film, I was immediately sold on Hemsworth as much more than just a pretty boy who looks good shirtless. We saw him in both action scenes and in tense, intimate moments - and he burned up the screen. Especially when he finds the hammer hidden at the heart of a secret New Mexico military installation and lets out a mega-shout to heaven. His damaged younger brother Loki is played by Tom Hiddleston, the god of mischief who turns into a major badass who wears black fetishwear and big horns on his head. Hiddleston says Loki's main issue is that "he was the guy who was almost the guy, but wasn't." Before we get into the footage, let me say that the 3D was good. It didn't feel intrusive, but at the same time we got a lot of fun squirts of fire aimed out into the audience - plus, of course, some hammer throwing. And the 3D made the sets really pop, giving the whole flick some texture. I'm usually the first to grouse about the overuse of 3D but I think Thor earned it. So what was so sciencey about the footage we saw? First of all, the emphasis was on the secret industrial-science facility where Thor is being held by clueless fed types for part of the movie. Plus, when Thor is hurled to Earth by Odin, who casts the young god out for his arrogance and penchant for war, we see a shot that looks remarkably like something out of a scifi movie. We zoom toward the galaxy from a great height, as if Thor's home Asgard is in another galaxy rather than being some kind of god dimension. Also, Asgard itself looks more like one of those really gorgeous Alderaan-style planets from Star Wars rather than heaven. Jane is the person who finds Thor when he crashes to Earth, so Thor is immediately treated like a scientifically-discoverable thing rather than a mystical presence. (There's also a nice moment of quippery where Jane tells her sidekick that "for a homeless guy, he's pretty cut.") And we hear him explaining to Jane that he comes from a place where "magic" and "science" are indistinguishable. This does nothing to quench our feeling that this is a scientific universe - it's just that the Asgardians have science that's advanced enough to be indistinguishable from magic. So I know what you want to know: What about the hammer fighting? Was it awesome? Hell yes. Like I said earlier, there's a great moment when Thor finds the hammer Mjolnir, pulls it from a pile of muddy rock, and lets out a cosmic yelp. Then we see him fighting a variety of enemies, including brother Loki and his fetishwear-clad Asgardian corps, who have taken over Asgard after the death of Odin. He does a good hammer throw, and the hammer manages to look both cartoonish and kickass at the same time. We also got a glimpse of Hemsworth doing the steely eye when he's being interrogated by a fed at the secret facility, who accuses him of being a highly-trained mercenary. I like the look of our mercenaryesque god in that scene: Human, but with a glint of godhood in his eyes. The other ultra-awesome part of the sizzle reel was meeting Destroyer, who looked like a medieval version of Gort from the original Day The Earth Stood Still. He stands a few heads taller than a human, and when he arrives the Feds mistake him for "unauthorized military technology" and ask him to stand down in bored tones. Then he opens all the layered vents on his suit and his face plates open to reveal - emptiness, shortly filled with a surge of fire. Again, it feels Gort-like, but also terrifically old school, as if he has a dragon breath weapon. I was left feeling like this film would be a pleasure to watch, full of awe-inspiring visual flourishes, great acting, mega-battles, and funny, tight dialogue. A perfect superhero treat.

July 25 2010, 3:11pm | Comments »

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"Thor" mixes science with magic, but science wins [First Look]

http://io9.com/5595715/thor-mixes-science-with-magic-but-science-wins

Though Thor is the story of a god who crushes his enemies with a magical hammer, Kenneth Branagh's Thor movie is set in a scientific universe. Or so it seemed from footage we saw this weekend, especially of Destroyer. Branagh, whose previous films include Frankenstein and Dead Again, is known for over-the-top theatricality and an emphasis on acting in his films. The 3D Thor is no exception, especially since the director says he loved Thor growing up and has even worked to include different versions of the first Avenger in his film. Though the hero's iconic hammer is pure Jack Kirby, Branagh assured the audience that "there are some Donald Blake touches" too. Natalie Portman plays Jane Foster, a minor character in the comics who has a very large role in the movie. She called her character a rare "real, frazzled, grounded female scientist - not the low-cut lab coat and sexy glasses kind of thing." She added that she was happy to get back in front of a green screen with an actor-oriented director like Branagh, because "working with green screens is a skill - it should be something you learn in acting school." Chris Hemsworth is the perfect physical type to play the god of thunder, and when we saw the sizzle reel from the film, I was immediately sold on Hemsworth as much more than just a pretty boy who looks good shirtless. We saw him in both action scenes and in tense, intimate moments - and he burned up the screen. Especially when he finds the hammer hidden at the heart of a secret New Mexico military installation and lets out a mega-shout to heaven. His damaged younger brother Loki is played by Tom Hiddleston, the god of mischief who turns into a major badass who wears black fetishwear and big horns on his head. Hiddleston says Loki's main issue is that "he was the guy who was almost the guy, but wasn't." Before we get into the footage, let me say that the 3D was good. It didn't feel intrusive, but at the same time we got a lot of fun squirts of fire aimed out into the audience - plus, of course, some hammer throwing. And the 3D made the sets really pop, giving the whole flick some texture. I'm usually the first to grouse about the overuse of 3D but I think Thor earned it. So what was so sciencey about the footage we saw? First of all, the emphasis was on the secret industrial-science facility where Thor is being held by clueless fed types for part of the movie. Plus, when Thor is hurled to Earth by Odin, who casts the young god out for his arrogance and penchant for war, we see a shot that looks remarkably like something out of a scifi movie. We zoom toward the galaxy from a great height, as if Thor's home Asgard is in another galaxy rather than being some kind of god dimension. Also, Asgard itself looks more like one of those really gorgeous Alderaan-style planets from Star Wars rather than heaven. Jane is the person who finds Thor when he crashes to Earth, so Thor is immediately treated like a scientifically-discoverable thing rather than a mystical presence. (There's also a nice moment of quippery where Jane tells her sidekick that "for a homeless guy, he's pretty cut.") And we hear him explaining to Jane that he comes from a place where "magic" and "science" are indistinguishable. This does nothing to quench our feeling that this is a scientific universe - it's just that the Asgardians have science that's advanced enough to be indistinguishable from magic. So I know what you want to know: What about the hammer fighting? Was it awesome? Hell yes. Like I said earlier, there's a great moment when Thor finds the hammer Mjolnir, pulls it from a pile of muddy rock, and lets out a cosmic yelp. Then we see him fighting a variety of enemies, including brother Loki and his fetishwear-clad Asgardian corps, who have taken over Asgard after the death of Odin. He does a good hammer throw, and the hammer manages to look both cartoonish and kickass at the same time. We also got a glimpse of Hemsworth doing the steely eye when he's being interrogated by a fed at the secret facility, who accuses him of being a highly-trained mercenary. I like the look of our mercenaryesque god in that scene: Human, but with a glint of godhood in his eyes. The other ultra-awesome part of the sizzle reel was meeting Destroyer, who looked like a medieval version of Gort from the original Day The Earth Stood Still. He stands a few heads taller than a human, and when he arrives the Feds mistake him for "unauthorized military technology" and ask him to stand down in bored tones. Then he opens all the layered vents on his suit and his face plates open to reveal - emptiness, shortly filled with a surge of fire. Again, it feels Gort-like, but also terrifically old school, as if he has a dragon breath weapon. I was left feeling like this film would be a pleasure to watch, full of awe-inspiring visual flourishes, great acting, mega-battles, and funny, tight dialogue. A perfect superhero treat.

July 25 2010, 12:11pm | Comments »

Posted on twitter.com

Captain America Clip From Comic-Con Reveals Thor Tie-In - Bleeding Cool Comic Book News and… http://goo.gl/fb/zYFnc

http://twitter.com/EoghannIrving/statuses/19493282791

July 25 2010, 5:35am | Comments »

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Captain America Clip From Comic-Con Reveals Thor Tie-In

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2010/07/25/captain-america-clip-from-comic-con-reveals-thor-tie-in/

This comes from a Little Bleeder in the field, risking life and limb – or at least eye – to bring us a first hand account of the Comic-Con Captain America “preview scene”: Brendon, Rich, love the site blah blah blah. I was surprised to see a scene from Captain America: The First Avenger played at the panel earlier today seeing as they’ve only been filming for five days so I thought I send report to you. At least we know what they’ve been shooting and what the general look of the movie will be. I’ve typed up my memory of what they’ve shown because it reveals some real surprises about this movie and how they are tying the movies together. The scene starts inside a castle in Norway during the second World War. The nazis smash their way in and storm through the hole, absolutely filling the room. There were two guys inside and one of them was killed, the nazis get the other guy and drag him through the castle. He’s an older guy and obviously scared. The nazis instruct this survivor to open a big sarcophagus and he is about to try when they are interrupted. Appearing first in shadow is Hugo Weaving. As he steps forward we see he isn’t the Red Skull yet. He’s dressed in an SS uniform. A real sharp dressed man. The old survivor seems to know who Hugo Weaving is. Weaving says he based his voice on Wenrern Herzog and I could kinda hear this when he said “It took me a long time to find this place”. Weaving pushes the top off of the sarchophagus with super strength. Inside is a skeleton just as you’d expect. The twist is – it’s holding the cosmic cube. At least it looked like the cosmic cube. What else could it be? Here’s the most interesting bit: Weaving calls this cube “the jewel of Odin’s treasure room”. Then he realizes it isn’t and it’s just a fake, so he smashes it. He now looks at a door way in the wall. Carved on this is Yggdrasil, the “world tree” from Norse myth and, of course, Thor. Somehow, Weaving knows how to open a secret panel in the door so he does and finds the real cosmic cube. It glows blue. The old man warns Weaving that this cube is not for normal men, to which Weaving said “Exactly!” with a big, evil grin and the clip ended. Overall, it was looking pretty good. Especially for just one week’s work. They also showed a trailer made out of old War clips and a costume test and that ended with Chris Evans throwing his shield. It went by too quickly to judge really but the costume looked just like the concept art. My name is Bruce. Thanks, Bruce. And he’s right – it is interesting that the cross-over threads are being worked here. They’ve got an Avengers film to sell, and to a wider audience than the comics-friendly geekmob.

July 25 2010, 4:29am | Comments »

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VIDEO – It’s The Avengers, Folks! All Of Them! - Bleeding Cool Comic Book News and Rumors http://goo.gl/fb/FHTQV

http://twitter.com/EoghannIrving/statuses/19489708806

July 25 2010, 4:16am | Comments »

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RT @bbcbreaking: BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward is negotiating the terms of his departure in the wake of the Gulf oil spill, a B.. http ...

http://twitter.com/EoghannIrving/statuses/19488907462

July 25 2010, 3:56am | Comments »

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Sherlock: A Study In Pink review

http://www.denofgeek.com/television/547082/sherlock_a_study_in_pink_review.html

Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss bring Sherlock firmly into the modern age. Here’s our take on A Study In Pink…WARNING: THERE ARE (QUITE MILD) SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU'VE NOT SEEN A STUDY IN PINK YET!It’s a very hard job to breathe fresh life into a character that’s been represented so many times on stage and screen. In the case of Sherlock Holmes, after all, it’s only been eight months since Robert Downey Jr’s period take on Fight Club hit the screens, and promptly ate up lots of box office cash. So what could Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss offer to make us sit up and take notice?As it happens, an awful lot.Their version of Sherlock takes little time in letting us know we’re in contemporary times. Doctor John Watson (Martin Freeman) is an army doctor back from Afghanistan, and by opening on battle scenes – as well as a series of melancholy shots of Watson alone, or trying to blog – the production immediately sets a very different tone. The titles then re-emphasise that this is a modern crime series that we’re watching and not a period piece, and great effort is made from the off to establish that this is a very modern Sherlock. But it’s one that, as it turns out, is faithful to the source material’s spirit, too.It’s not long into A Study In Pink that Watson comes into contact with Sherlock Holmes for the first time, and Steven Moffat’s script teases the build-up to his appearance terrifically well. The scene at the police press conference, with Holmes texting the assembled throng time after time, is very well done, and very funny too. It builds up the entrance of the character with real skill.However, before I get to the character of Sherlock himself, it’d be wrong not to acknowledge just how the opening scenes also highlight very quickly just how tight Paul McGuigan’s direction is. McGuigan, whose background is movies such as Gangster Number One and Lucky Number Slevin, is a brilliant, brilliant choice here. Throughout A Study In Pink, his camerawork is unfussy, and he applies a filmic version of the laws of thirds to many of his frames. It’s to great effect, too. Furthermore, come the big climactic scene, he’s happy to ground his camera, eschewing close-ups in favour of having two actors talk to each other. It’s at the point where Sherlock confronts his nemesis face to face that McGuigan’s camera moves the least. Granted, the quality of the written material enables him to do this, but he wisely figures that we’re interested in seeing the story being told, rather than any distracting gimmickry. As such, McGuigan’s steady hand is very welcome indeed.He also employs some terrific little techniques, specifically the text messages appearing on screen, which we first see during the aforementioned press conference scene. This too could have been a gimmick in the wrong hands, but it’s used sparingly, and to give the audience pieces of important information. I really liked the way he staged the foot-chase after the cab, too, taking advantage of Mr Holmes' inner-satnav.So, back to Sherlock himself, then. For not long after the aforementioned press conference, we finally get to meet Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock for the first time. He’s a texting-mad, nicotine patch-wearing creation, a man who the police tolerate rather than embrace (he is, after all, the only consulting detective in the world), and in some cases actively dislike. Acknowledging that people usually tell him to piss off, Cumberbatch plays Holmes in the early stages as a straight know-it-all, and it’s only when we’re allowed a quick wink in Watson’s direction later on in the story that other sides to his character come through. In the early stages though, Sherlock’s delight at uncovering a serial killer at work offers suggestions that he enjoys the crimes as much as the killer. In his words, after all, “the game is on”. It’s left then to John Watson – himself fighting potential post traumatic stress disorder – to try and keep up, and a crime-fighting double act heads off to work.Cumberbatch proves to be a superb choice as Sherlock, a confident, committed, brilliant man, but one fighting back curiosity (er, just not very hard) and a need to be Inspector Google at all times. His portrayal is both interesting, and very much his own, and he anchors the show extremely well. But credit too to Martin Freeman as well. Many of Freeman’s roles in recent times have fallen into some kind of derivative of Tim from The Office. Yet last year we saw him as Chris Curry in Micro Men taking a more serious turn, and here he’s very strong indeed as Watson. He underplays the character very well, both complementing the frenetic nature of Holmes, while remaining very still in his portrayal for large parts of the story. There’s an obvious parallel of sorts to be drawn between Doctor Who and his assistant here, but Holmes and Watson doesn’t work like that. Holmes needs Watson’s intelligence and predictable reliability rather than his emotional support, and unlike Who, where the Doctor is economical with his dialogue, it’s Watson who observes quietly, only interjecting where necessary. Freeman captures that very well indeed, and it'll be interesting to see him develop the role across the initial order of three adventures.The actual case itself that Holmes and Watson face in this maiden story engaging, and offers ample opportunity for both Sherlock and Dr Watson to contribute their respective skills. And as you'd hope, there’s a great deal of fun to be had in watching how it all unwinds. It’s perhaps not the most demonstrative of Holmes’ adventures to kick off with, but that’s not a bad thing given just how much business A Study In Pink has to get through.For this is the bit where, not for the first time this year, I find myself sending plaudits to the man behind the word processor. Steven Moffat’s script is the grounding strength of Sherlock. It subtlety crams in quite a lot of work, while still giving us space to sit back and enjoy the adventure. It’s a confident, energetic, funny and very entertaining piece of writing, that manages to pack together a case, the introduction of the main characters and Sherlock ecosystem, along with underlying threads for later on. It also bristles with the quality of dialogue that Moffat has built a reputation upon (“he’s a great man. If we’re lucky, he might be a good one”, for instance), and isn't afraid to have fun teasing the relationship between Sherlock and Watson, either. In short, he’s based his script on A Study In Scarlet, yet he’s made his version very much his own. Just popping really picky pants on for a minute, while I loved the denouement to the story, I didn’t get quite the sense of threat from it that the opening of the story was implying. But I take that as a by-product of making the drama so character-focused, of putting clever people against clever people, and didn’t feel like it hurt A Study In Pink at all. Arguably, it helps it if anything. Also, I'd guessed the mystery of the story prior to its revelation, but again, I can't say it dampened my enjoyment at all.Because ultimately, I thought this was a rollicking 90 minutes of entertainment, the kind of new high profile drama that we don’t tend to get treated to in the summer months. It’s set a very high standard for next week’s story to follow, and it’s laid some obvious threads to be picked up over the coming weeks. But even as a one-off, standalone piece of entertainment, it worked a treat. Furthermore, for my money anyway, it puts the tepid big budget movie of last winter firmly in its place too. Roll on next week for adventure number two, then, and I'd be grateful is someone at the BBC could greenlight a few more of these stories when they get to the office on Monday morning...

July 24 2010, 11:18pm | Comments »

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VIDEO – It’s The Avengers, Folks! All Of Them!

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BleedingCool/~3/NQBv4yb0peY/

I wondered what that shouting was. Looks like they upped their bid to get Mark Ruffalo for Saturday announcement after all…

Yes, that’s the shot they really wanted. Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Robert Downey Jr (Iron Man), Clark Gregg (Agent Coulson), Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Chris Evans (Captain America), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye) and Mark Ruffalo (Hulk). Here’s that announcement in video…

And the crowd go wild and raise their phones…

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July 24 2010, 8:33pm | Comments »

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Watch the Stargate Universe Season Two trailer! - GateWorld News http://goo.gl/fb/JNAmB

http://twitter.com/EoghannIrving/statuses/19462476275

July 24 2010, 7:10pm | Comments »

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Police Speak On Comic-Con Stabbing - Comic Book Resources http://goo.gl/fb/nuaos

http://twitter.com/EoghannIrving/statuses/19462190850

July 24 2010, 7:05pm | Comments »

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Police Speak On Comic-Con Stabbing

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=27444

CBR News was on the scene to get the official word on the incidence of violence that broke out in Hall H and to catch a glimpse at the suspect who reportedly stabbed an attendee in the eye with a pen.

July 24 2010, 6:43pm | Comments »

Eoghann Irving's Lifestream

I'm watching Undercover Boss: http://cli.cr/bV6UZ2 (with @clicker)

RT @AdamJPurcell: Very impressed with Sherlock. Fun but thoughtful and unmistakably Holmes. Was wary of a modern day take but it works b ...

RT @robwillb: Some #Glee Season 2 dish from ComicCon... http://bit.ly/cX7SxZ

"Thor" mixes science with magic, but science wins [First Look] - io9 http://goo.gl/fb/iTrQz

Sherlock: A Study In Pink review - Cult TV News, Reviews, Lists, Comment and Fun - Den of Geek http://goo.gl/fb/W6rP8

"Thor" mixes science with magic, but science wins [First Look]

"Thor" mixes science with magic, but science wins [First Look]

Captain America Clip From Comic-Con Reveals Thor Tie-In - Bleeding Cool Comic Book News and… http://goo.gl/fb/zYFnc

Captain America Clip From Comic-Con Reveals Thor Tie-In

VIDEO – It’s The Avengers, Folks! All Of Them! - Bleeding Cool Comic Book News and Rumors http://goo.gl/fb/FHTQV

RT @bbcbreaking: BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward is negotiating the terms of his departure in the wake of the Gulf oil spill, a B.. http ...

Sherlock: A Study In Pink review

VIDEO – It’s The Avengers, Folks! All Of Them!

Watch the Stargate Universe Season Two trailer! - GateWorld News http://goo.gl/fb/JNAmB

Police Speak On Comic-Con Stabbing - Comic Book Resources http://goo.gl/fb/nuaos

Police Speak On Comic-Con Stabbing

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