Adventures in Geekdom, a blog by Mike Spencer

More Star Wars Movies on the Horizon?

No, I’m not talking about the 3D versions that George Lucas has promised to unveil in the near future. I’m talking about a brand new sequel trilogy (set after the Original Trilogy). Um, let me take a moment to gather my thoughts…

Holy freaking crap!

Now, this is completely rumor at this point. I saw the story on io9.com, but the original report came from IESB.net. IESB claims that the new trilogy will be released within two years after the existing six films have been converted to 3D and released in theaters. These are expected to bring in $500-750 million, which will allow George Lucas to self-finance the new trilogy.

IESB points out how the prequel trilogy quickly followed the successful re-release of the Original Trilogy (Special Editions) in 1997 and I have to say that this does seem plausible. Will it actually happen? I have no idea, and in fact, we may not know anything for sure for quite some time. Lucas isn’t likely to have finished converting the existing movies to 3D until 2015 or 2016 so the next trilogy probably wouldn’t be released until 2017 or 2018. That leaves more than enough time for Lucas to change his mind or the rumors to be squashed.

But let’s say it were to happen. What would it mean? It would mean that the people that grew up with the original trilogy, that took their kids to see the prequels, may be able to take their grandkids to see the sequels. It would also mean that another generation of children would grow up with the magic of Star Wars. I don’t care what you think of the prequels (personally, I much prefer the Original Trilogy), but kids ate them up and I’m sure the same would happen the next time around.

Another thing it would mean is that the legacy of Star Wars would continue to grow and live on far into the future. Lucas would be opening up a whole new adventure, potentially with completely different characters, that would undoubtedly spur novels, comic books, video games, and whatever else.

And, let’s face it, it would probably be pretty cool. Sure, the movies probably couldn’t live up to the magic of the Original Trilogy, but, even if you disliked the prequels, you have to admit that there were some good moments, and the next trilogy would probably have some of those moments too. Need I point out the awesomeness of Darth Maul, Yoda, and Obi-Wan Kenobi in the prequels?

So, what’s the consensus? Personally, I think I would like to see them happen. How bad could they be?

Tags: Star Wars
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Kick-Ass is Bad-Ass

This weekend turned out to be a good one for catching up on movies. After finally seeing Moon on Friday night, I watched Kick-Ass on Saturday night and, honestly, I really enjoyed it. I was a little surprised at the brutality, but I really liked how the story was told and how it presented itself.

Most of the film revolves around a geeky teenager named Dave whose love for comic books leads him to don a costume and take on evil as the alter ego Kick-Ass. He’s really just a normal, likable guy and the whole superhero gig doesn’t go as well as planned and he gets in way over his head.

But it turns out that Kick-Ass isn’t the only superhero in town. Big Daddy and his 11-year-old daughter Hit Girl legitimately kick some serious bad guy ass in a very vicious and brutal manner. Hit Girl is one hell of a badass, which led to some outcry when the film was originally released in theaters.

I thought the film was well-done for the most part. It did take a little longer to get the story set up than I might have expected, but I even found that entertaining in its own way. I mean, who doesn’t love a good origin story, right?

Overall, I liked it, but not as much as Scott Pilgrim, another comic book adaption that was a whole lotta fun. It was a little heavy on the violence and a little light on humor for my taste, but I still enjoyed it quite a bit. The highlights of the movie were mostly the action scenes, but it did have a few good one-liners too. Not recommended for children or your mother.

Tags: Kick-Ass
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Moon

Last night, I finally got a chance to watch Hugo award winning Moon by Duncan Jones, son of the acclaimed musician, David Bowie. David Bowie’s music certainly had its science fiction influence, especially his Ziggy Stardust album, so I guess it’s no surprise that his son’s first major film would be a science fiction endeavor.

I had heard great things about the film and had been meaning to watch it for awhile. Recently, Moon won a  Hugo award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form and it also became available for instant watch on Netflix so I really had no more excuses. I was rewarded with a very intelligent film about an astronaut at the end of his three-year stint working on the moon.

The film is a very solitary view of Sam’s final days on the moon and addresses many of the atrocities that could occur in such a situation. I don’t want to go into more detail for fear of spoiling essential plot points, but, needless to say, the most interesting aspects of the film are the horrors that Sam uncovers.

The film has a minimal, but high quality cast with Sam Bell being played by Sam Rockwell and the computer GERTY being voiced by Kevin Spacey, whose monotone dialog was delivered perfectly.

Overall, I thought the film was well done, especially for an independent production, and the plot was very good. It’s not a film that will keep you on the edge of your seat; the story is a more subtle and intellectual than it is action-packed. Still, there was enough suspense and intrigue that I never got bored. I’m definitely glad that I watched it, but it won’t go down as one of my favorites.

Tags: Moon
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Scott Pilgrim Vs The World

Last night, my brother and I decided to go see Scott Pilgrim, a movie that I knew almost nothing about, but was drawn to by solid reviews and a huge amount of hype coming out of Comic-Con. If I had to describe the film in one word, it would be AWESOME.

Enormous Scott Pilgrim ad on the side of the Hilton

I really didn’t have any idea what to expect going in, but the experience left me thoroughly entertained. Not only was there great action, special effects, and humor, the film also had an excellent plot with thoughtful dialog. But perhaps the best part was that it was FUN from beginning to end.

The way the story was told was so creative. There was this ever-present video game vibe throughout the movie that I thought worked really well. For example, every time Scott got into a fight, it felt like a scene out of Mortal Kombat and every opponent that he defeated would burst into an explosion of coins. Then, there was this other scene where they played the Seinfeld theme and interjected sitcom-style laughter. It was really random and was pretty brief, but it was really amusing.

Another thing that I liked was how everyone was just able to kick some serious ass and that was all just well and normal. Getting punched through a brick wall wasn’t really that big a deal. Maybe it hurt a little, but was typical in a bare-knuckles brawl. The writers didn’t try to explain it; that’s just how things were.

On top of all the afore mentioned awesomeness, the film was also a great love story. I know that seems sappy, but I really liked how everything Scott faced was to win the heart of a girl.

Overall, I really enjoyed the movie. So much so, that I could almost go see it again or perhaps check out the comic book series.

Tags: Comic-Con, Scott Pilgrim
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