Weekend Roundup

Just a few this week.

No Heroics - Trailer for an upcoming UK television series about superheroes who are off-duty (The Movie Blog)

Wii Fit Parody - YouTube video that questions the effectiveness of Wii Fit's exercise programs

The WB.com - A few years ago, the WB television station merged with UPN to create the CW.  The WB channel is back, but this time on the internet.  You can watch select episodes of Buffy, Smallville, Everwood, and other WB shows for free with commercials.

Doctor Who movie - Speculation on the possibility of a Doctor Who movie (The Movie Blog)

How to draw anything (in 1 step) - Funny tutorial on drawing (Aviary)

 

Did you find any good sites this week? 

Weekend Roundup

A sampling of sites I saw this week:

 

2081 - Trailer for a movie based on Kurt Vonnegut's short story Harrison Bergeron.  I first read this story in 7th grade, and while I love it, I don't know if there's enough material in it for a full movie.

Iron Man 2 - News on the Iron Man sequel (The Movie Blog)

TheWB.com - The WB is launching a site this week where you can watch past WB shows as well as some new web shows (RedEye)

Death of Star Wars - Comments on Star Wars: The Clone Wars and how it deviates from the spirit of the original trilogy (The Movie Blog)

Top 10 YouTube Hacks - List of YouTube tips and tricks (Lifehacker)

Fantastic Contraption - Game where you design a vehicle or system to move an object to its goal.  Some of the higher levels are very tricky/frustrating.  Warning:  you may spend a lot of time on this.

Flow - Simple flash game where you drift around in the ocean and eat organisms

Write Better Web Content - 21 tips for improving your online writing, blogger or not (Dumb Little Man)

What Makes for a Good Blog? - Merlin Mann lists his opinion of the necessary qualities (43folders)

Desktop Blogging Tools - Reviews for 15 blogging tools (Smashing Magazine)

9 Tips to Get the Most Out of Social Media - What the title says (Stepcase Lifehack)

 

What interesting or useful sites did you come across this week?  Share your links in the comments.

Warner Bros. Announces Superman Reboot and Future DC Movie Plans

Comic books fans received exciting news today with Warner Bros. announcement of its plans for future DC comic book movies.

The good news is Warner Bros. will be adopting the Marvel model of introducing characters one by one, each in their own films. This means a Superman reboot (likely no Bryan Singer and no Brandon Routh) as well as more superhero movies including the Green Lantern, Flash, Wonder Woman, and Green Arrow. Then there'll be multi-character films. Hello live-action Justice League! (It's a dream come true.)

I'm happy the next Superman movie won't have to deal with the mistakes in Superman Returns (such as the kid!), but I'm disappointed that they're scrapping the whole movie and starting over. I wanted a solution between reboot and sequel. I thought Brandon Routh was a brilliant choice for Superman and his Clark Kent was perfectly mild-mannered. Routh had a difficult job of wearing the suit and cape on the big screen after Christopher Reeve, and the next actor to take the role will have the added pressure of rebooting the franchise.

The makers of the 1978 Superman film wanted an unknown actor to be the title character and they got Christopher Reeve, probably one of the best casting choices in film history. Bryan Singer kept that philosophy for Superman Returns, and I wonder if Warner Bros. will continue that for the upcoming comic book films. Do we need unknown (or little known) actors to portray popular superheroes or is it better to get popular actors for the roles? What do you think?

Check out The Movie Blog for more info on the WB's and DC's plans, and you can read the full article at comingsoon.net.

Technorati Tags: Superman,Superman Returns,reboot,DC,WB,Warner Bros.,comics,superheroes,movies

Superman movie: Reboot or Sequel?

The Movie Blog posted about the future of Superman in theaters. The studio's taking their time deciding on what to do next--reboot the franchise or make a sequel to Superman Returns (SR). Superman fans have mixed reactions to SR. Character portrayals, casting choices, and the plot have all been debated over the past two years since the movie came out. The one thing most people agree on is that Superman shouldn't have a son. ("The kid needs to go!" and variations of the same thought appear all over fansites.)

I liked Superman Returns. It's by no means an incredible comic book movie, but it has its moments. It has awesome visual effects--the falling plane, the earthquake, and the moment when Superman bursts through the clouds into the sunlight are stunning scenes. The trailer is proof enough of what a beautiful film it is. Take a look:

I don't want a reboot or a sequel. I want a do-over. Consider SR non-existent as far as the plot goes, but keep some of the same things. I liked the musical score, and I want Bryan Singer to direct the next Superman movie. The visual look of Superman Returns is all thanks to him. Write a better script, and don't let the director have so much control over the story.

Despite what some people think of Brandon Routh's ability to pull off Superman and Clark Kent, I want to see him in the next Superman film. Give him more lines to work with. Routh obviously imitated Christopher Reeve's portrayal of Superman, and that's okay but I'd like to see a new interpretation. Let Routh flex his talent. Give us a dorky Clark Kent and a noble Superman without copying past incarnations.

I like Kevin Spacey's take on Lex Luthor, but Lex shouldn't be the main villain in the next Superman movie. Enough of Lex Luthor and his "affinity for beachfront property." It was amusing in the 1978 film but now it's overdone. Let Superman deal with Bizarro, Brainaic, Darkseid, or Doomsday instead.

I do want to see someone else as Lois Lane. Nothing against Kate Bosworth, but she's not right for the part. I don't know if it was her or the script in Superman Returns, but it didn't work. I'd love to see Erica Durance (Lois from Smallville) in the next Superman movie as Lois Lane. She portrays an independent, smart, and strong Lois. It's far from SR's Lois who needs to date her editor's nephew and use him to get what she wants at the Daily Planet. Lois Lane has always been the model of an independent, working woman. She doesn't need anyone's help to be the top reporter at the Daily Planet.

We don't need another origin story for the most popular superhero ever. Please don't use Kryptonite as a cop out, and seeing Jonathan Kent would be a welcomed treat. I just want an entertaining, smart Superman film that stays true to the original characters.

Technorati Tags: Superman, Bryan Singer, Superman Returns, movies, reboot, sequel

Weekend Roundup

Between Google Reader, StumbleUpon, Digg, and Delicious, I see a lot of web sites and read about various topics. So here's my idea: As I'm browsing during the week, I'll keep track of the more interesting content that I find and then I'll post a list with a few remarks on the weekend.

It depends on how much free time I spend online (and me remembering to keep track of sites), so this might not be a weekly thing. With that said, here's my first Weekend Roundup. If you haven't come across these sites, dig in! This is Digital Fare, after all.

The Empire Poster Quiz - Empire has a collection of letters cropped from movie posters. You guess which movie title each letter is from. I got 9 right. How many do you know? (Don't cheat!)

14 Ways to Use Twitter Politely - The Morning News posted this article about the Dos and Don'ts of Twittering with tips about responding to messages, keeping some conversations private, and promoting your own blogs or services. I'm not on Twitter yet (I say "yet," because I've accepted that I will sign up for Twitter at some point), but this is a nice list for any Twitterer to read.

Half-Blood Prince Delayed - Several sites, The Movie Blog included, posted news this week that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, originally premiering in November, has been delayed until summer 2009. Potter fans are disappointed, of course, and The Movie Blog briefly commented on why this might be a bad move for Warner Brothers.

Madagascar 3 - So I have The Movie Blog in my RSS feeds. The sequel to the Dreamsworks film isn't out yet, but here's news on part 3. Madagascar was okay...not a movie I want to see again. Must we have sequels to mediocre movies? No new ideas for animated films? Really?

How to think faster, better on your feet - CNN posted an article about applying improv techniques to real life situations. I found the article through Lifehacker.

Top 10 How To Videos - Lifehacker's list of tutorial videos covers a range of topics including buying cars, Photoshopping photos, and boosting Wi-Fi signals. The Photoshop video is my favorite on the list.

Search Any Website From Within Firefox's Address Bar - This post on Fabworker explains how to search sites using Firefox's address bar in one step instead of going to site and using its search box. Cool feature for Firefox 3.

Better Blogging - Men With Pens has a huge resource list for bloggers with advice, how tos, and explanations of blog-related topics.

30 Books Everyone Should Read Before Their 30th Birthday - Great list of literature to work through. I've read 5 books on the list and parts from a few others.

Did you come across any good sites this past week? Something helpful, funny, or unexpected? Feel free to post your links in the comments.

Hancock had a good premise

I wasn't very interested in seeing Hancock, but it wasn't a waste of time. It started off as an interesting, original superhero film. John Hancock (played by Will Smith) has superpowers but a bad reputation with the public. Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman) is a public relations executive who offers to reinvent Hancock's image after Hancock saves his life. Charlize Theron plays Mary, Ray's wife. Major plot spoilers below the image.

I like the idea of a superhero who helps out but doesn't really care about others. Hancock saves people and stops disasters, but he doesn't make it nice and tidy. He wrecks buildings and he causes traffic jams. It's a nice change from Superman creating fine-tuned order out of chaos. (Watch the scene in Superman Returns where Superman zips around Metropolis during the earthquake, blasting broken glass with his heat vision and catching falling parts of buildings before they hit the pedestrians on the street below. It's cool and only Superman could pull that off, but it's too neat.) Granted, we don't know why Hancock even bothers, but it's nice to see a super-powered person who gets his hands dirty.

The movie could have stayed on that thread--a superhero who needs to reinvent his image, who needs to have a better reputation with the public and answer to the damages he causes. It's similar to that guy suing Mr. Incredible for saving him when he didn't want to be saved. It can be comical and it's different. It makes you think about how superheroes would function in the real world. Will Smith could have easily pulled that off, but even he couldn't make the rest of Hancock entertaining.

It should have ended with the new and improved Hancock, polite and available to lend a helping hand in his spiffy suit. The movie drags on though. The lame mythos, the soap-opera side-plot between Hancock and Mary (lost lovers with a dash of amnesia mixed in) and the forced sacrifices the characters have to make feel like excuses to have a few fight scenes and blood.

Hancock deserves some credit for a different take on superhero movies, but the last third of the movie should have been cut.

Technorati Tags: Hancock

Dr. Horrible on Imacynic

I have an article up on imacynic about Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. It's a blend of my Dr. Horrible posts here with some new/updated stuff. Click here to read it.

My friend Jamie runs imacynic.org, "literature for the eclectic and affluent geek." I'm a contributing writer, and so far my articles have been about television and movies with the exception of one about Post Secret and Flickr. Be sure to check out his site (especially the Dark Knight content)!

Technorati tags: imacynic, drhorrible, Whedon

Sci Fi Wire's Top 10 Canceled Shows

Sci Fi Wire posted a list of 10 sci-fi television shows that were canceled after their first season, before the general audience had a chance to see their awesomeness.

I was surprised to see Eerie, Indiana at #10. I used to watch that Saturday mornings, and it was a nice pairing with Goosebumps. I was not surprised to see Firefly at #1. It's one of the few shows that got its huge following after it was canceled.

I noticed half the shows on the list were on FOX. Just saying.

Technorati Tags: television, canceled, scifi

Supernatural Fandom: United We're Boring

Image from SPNmedia

It's summer time, most TV shows are on hiatus, and that means there's not much to talk about on fansites. It happens every year: forum participation goes down and new threads stop popping up. Take away new episodes, plug the constant flow of spoilers, and hardcore Supernatural fans will do one of two things: argue about Sam's place in the series or complain about Dean's role on the show.

Supernatural is one of the few shows that has a main cast of two people. Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki star as Dean and Sam Winchester (respectively). Fans tend to favor one brother over the other, so all summer long, it's the fall-back conversation. Who's the better hunter? Which brother is a better brother? Which brother has more fans (and which fan group is the best)? Back and forth, the same stuff over and over again. It's not centralized to one place-- the CW's forums, Supernatural.tv, even IMDB's messageboard--have had their share of redundant discussions that often turn to heated arguments.

Supernatural's fandom has that kind of loyalty and dedication because there are only two main characters. Attaching to one is easy, and pitting Dean and Sam against each other is even easier to do.

Imagine if the same thing happened in another fandom. Take Heroes for example. Who's your favorite? The choices are Hiro, Ando, Claire, Mr. Bennet, Peter, Nathan, Matt, Isaac, Sylar, Jessica/Niki, Micah, DL, Mohinder...and still more. The number of characters splinters the fandom, and in this case, that's a good thing. Even if one character has a huge following, chances are it won't be overpowering. Fans of the other characters keep each group in check, and it's less likely one following will be dominant.

It's a different story with Supernatural, though. Two characters, two followings, and they're head to head with few new topics to discuss.

We still have six weeks until season 4 starts.

Technorati tags: Supernatural, television, fandom

And so it starts

Welcome to Digital Fare, now that I'm set up, more or less.

Officially, this blog starts this week, but you'll notice there are blog entries on here dated from April through July 2008. I kept their original post dates of those entries from my first blog and I thought their content fit here.

My plan is to post about topics related to the media (movies, tv), internet, and entertainment. Digital Fare as in "something offered to the public, for entertainment, enjoyment, consumption, etc."

Thank you for reading, and I hope you visit often!

About

Welcome to Digital Fare, a blog about movies, television, and internet media. I'm Kali and I've been blogging since September 2004, but Digital Fare started in August 2008. (I posted about random topics on my first blog, and some of the last posts there grew into this blog.) I'm currently studying media and communication in college, and I use this blog as an informal way to write about my interest in media.

Where else can you find me?

You can follow me on Twitter or check out what I'm listening to on Uvumi. I post things I find amusing and/or like on Tumblr. I have a short fiction blog called Flicker in the Night. I was the forum administrator on Supernatural.tv from October 2005 to February 2009 and I still stick around there because old habits die hard.

If you'd like to contact me, you can do so through my tumblr.  There, you can send me questions, suggestions, or get in touch.  If you'd like me to respond to you personally, please include your contact information in your message.

Like what you see?

Please subscribe to Digital Fare by clicking the orange button on top of the sidebar if you like the content on this blog. The RSS feed is freely provided by Feedburner. (If you're unfamiliar with RSS, please check out whatisrss.com.)

About the site

Digital Fare uses a free template, LightWord, from Deluxe Templates. Digital Fare is hosted by Blogger and looks best in Firefox. All images on the blog are hosted by PhotoBucket. The Follow Me Twitter badge in the sidebar is from Design Mirkku.

Thank you for visiting!


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