By: Greg Payne
Comic-Con 2012 just wrapped up, having delivered more goodies than Mrs. Fields, the Keebler Elves, and Ben and Jerry ever have, combined. One of my personal favorites was the first trailer for Season 3 of AMC's The Walking Dead, one of the best dramas on television right now.
Before I dive into any analysis, take a look at it for yourself (warning, a forgotten character from the past springs up at the very end, but other than that, it's spoiler-free...But keep in mind, said character has already been confirmed to return for weeks now, so I don't know how much of a spoiler it actually is anymore).
I mean, holy shit, right?
I've never read the comic book series the show is based off of, but Season 3 gives us three of its most memorable characters and settings: The Governor, the prison, and Michonne. I can't preach that I know a whole lot about any of the three, but I do know that Michonne is a katana-wielding badass, the Governor is a hell of a villain, and the prison makes for one of the most intense and genuinely creepy settings the characters have been forced to endure.
Monday, July 16, 2012
First 'The Dark Knight Rises' Reviews Surface
By: Greg Payne
We're four days away from the release of The Dark Knight Rises, the final chapter in Christopher Nolan's incredibly thought-provoking and successful Batman franchise, and a slew of reviews have made their way online. Following the gargantuan success of 2008's The Dark Knight, it was difficult to see how Nolan and co. would top that as they rounded out their trilogy, but the reviews have been overwhelming positive so far.
Through 20 reviews, The Dark Knight Rises is sitting at a pristine 95% on Rotten Tomatoes (that figure should change 16,435 times by the end of today), with only one negative review so far (more on this in a minute).
Well-regarded critics like Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter came through with the following praise: "Big-time Hollywood filmmaking at its most massively accomplished, this last installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy makes everything in the rival Marvel universe look thoroughly silly and childish."
The reviews, in general, highlight the emotional resonance of the film as one of its true strengths. Nolan, unsurprisingly, appears to have crafted a film built upon the humanity of its characters and a true sense of struggle, despair, and, one would assume, triumph appears to be coming through to viewers.
As for the negative review, I'm paying absolutely zero attention to it. Marshall Fine (who? Exactly) went the laziest route possible, saying the action, at times, is so "massive and thunderously clunky that I might as well have been watching one of the Transformers movies." This is basically the exact same first negative review that surfaced when The Avengers debuted in May. We all know how crappy the Transformers film franchise has been, with mindless action they key to its lofty box office numbers, but now, when no one likes action sequences in other movies, they take the easy way out and throw up an absurdly weak comparison to Michael Bay's giant robot movies. Pay this review no mind, as all other evidence suggests we're in for one hell of a movie.
If you want more The Dark Knight Rises, here's a spoiler-free 13-minute behind-the-scenes featurette. It basically outlines the story and has some nice insight from the likes of Chris Nolan, all of the major stars, and a handful of other producers and brass.
The Dark Knight Rises lands in theaters this Friday, July 20, and I'm sure we'll be seeing massive box office receipts.
gregpayne0@gmail.com
@Greg_Payne
We're four days away from the release of The Dark Knight Rises, the final chapter in Christopher Nolan's incredibly thought-provoking and successful Batman franchise, and a slew of reviews have made their way online. Following the gargantuan success of 2008's The Dark Knight, it was difficult to see how Nolan and co. would top that as they rounded out their trilogy, but the reviews have been overwhelming positive so far.
Through 20 reviews, The Dark Knight Rises is sitting at a pristine 95% on Rotten Tomatoes (that figure should change 16,435 times by the end of today), with only one negative review so far (more on this in a minute).
Well-regarded critics like Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter came through with the following praise: "Big-time Hollywood filmmaking at its most massively accomplished, this last installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy makes everything in the rival Marvel universe look thoroughly silly and childish."
The reviews, in general, highlight the emotional resonance of the film as one of its true strengths. Nolan, unsurprisingly, appears to have crafted a film built upon the humanity of its characters and a true sense of struggle, despair, and, one would assume, triumph appears to be coming through to viewers.
As for the negative review, I'm paying absolutely zero attention to it. Marshall Fine (who? Exactly) went the laziest route possible, saying the action, at times, is so "massive and thunderously clunky that I might as well have been watching one of the Transformers movies." This is basically the exact same first negative review that surfaced when The Avengers debuted in May. We all know how crappy the Transformers film franchise has been, with mindless action they key to its lofty box office numbers, but now, when no one likes action sequences in other movies, they take the easy way out and throw up an absurdly weak comparison to Michael Bay's giant robot movies. Pay this review no mind, as all other evidence suggests we're in for one hell of a movie.
If you want more The Dark Knight Rises, here's a spoiler-free 13-minute behind-the-scenes featurette. It basically outlines the story and has some nice insight from the likes of Chris Nolan, all of the major stars, and a handful of other producers and brass.
The Dark Knight Rises lands in theaters this Friday, July 20, and I'm sure we'll be seeing massive box office receipts.
gregpayne0@gmail.com
@Greg_Payne
Thursday, July 12, 2012
First Image of Ben Whishaw as Q in 'Skyfall'
By: Greg Payne
Skyfall producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli formerly announced today what many of us already knew: Ben Whishaw (I'm Not There) will be playing James Bond's gadget guru Q in the upcoming 23rd entry in the series, due out November 9.
Along with the official announcement came the first official image of Whishaw as the new Q, looking appropriately intelligent and somewhat stern, with an impatient-looking, out of focus 007 in the background.
Skyfall will mark the first time Q has been present in the Daniel Craig-led Bond films, and, given the more grounded take on the character (compared to the Pierce Brosnan films, specifically), it'll be really interesting to see how this new quartermaster is entered into the equation. I highly doubt Bond will be driving invisible cars and flying around with a jet pack strapped to his back in Skyfall, but it wouldn't be a stretch to imagine 007's new ride being outfitted with some of the classic toys associated with Sean Connery's original take on the character (machine guns in the front, oil slick dispenser in the back, missiles that shoot out of the grill, etc.).
Skyfall producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli formerly announced today what many of us already knew: Ben Whishaw (I'm Not There) will be playing James Bond's gadget guru Q in the upcoming 23rd entry in the series, due out November 9.
Along with the official announcement came the first official image of Whishaw as the new Q, looking appropriately intelligent and somewhat stern, with an impatient-looking, out of focus 007 in the background.
Skyfall will mark the first time Q has been present in the Daniel Craig-led Bond films, and, given the more grounded take on the character (compared to the Pierce Brosnan films, specifically), it'll be really interesting to see how this new quartermaster is entered into the equation. I highly doubt Bond will be driving invisible cars and flying around with a jet pack strapped to his back in Skyfall, but it wouldn't be a stretch to imagine 007's new ride being outfitted with some of the classic toys associated with Sean Connery's original take on the character (machine guns in the front, oil slick dispenser in the back, missiles that shoot out of the grill, etc.).
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
'White Collar' Season 4, Episode 1: 'Wanted' Recap
By: Greg Payne
Poor Neal Caffrey. Six weeks after being forced to flee New York City due to the begrudging Dick of the Year, Agent Kramer, he was forced to flee his new island home, Cape Verde.
Unfortunately, his dash from Cape Verde wasn't quite as smooth as his escape from New York. The first episode of Season 4 of White Collar, 'Wanted,' ended with a gun pointed at Neal's face, by the agent sent by the FBI to hunt him down. Neal doesn't like guns, so I'm guessing Neal isn't very comfortable with his current predicament.
But who are we kidding, I'm getting waaaaaay too far head of myself. How did we get there?
The FBI wasn't willing to just let Neal go. And they weren't about to let Peter Burke be the one to try and find him again, due to his very close, personal friendship with Neal. So they brought in agent Kyle Collins, a brash, motivated, and apparently heartless member of the suit brigade.
Peter, though, feels some serious remorse for Neal's predicament, since he's the one who signaled to him to run in the first place. He decides he needs to locate Neal before Collins does. What the plan is once he finds Neal is anybody's guess. One of my biggest questions about Season 4 is how these two will be able to work together again. We didn't get an answer in the first episode, nor did we get any clues.
Poor Neal Caffrey. Six weeks after being forced to flee New York City due to the begrudging Dick of the Year, Agent Kramer, he was forced to flee his new island home, Cape Verde.
Unfortunately, his dash from Cape Verde wasn't quite as smooth as his escape from New York. The first episode of Season 4 of White Collar, 'Wanted,' ended with a gun pointed at Neal's face, by the agent sent by the FBI to hunt him down. Neal doesn't like guns, so I'm guessing Neal isn't very comfortable with his current predicament.
But who are we kidding, I'm getting waaaaaay too far head of myself. How did we get there?
The FBI wasn't willing to just let Neal go. And they weren't about to let Peter Burke be the one to try and find him again, due to his very close, personal friendship with Neal. So they brought in agent Kyle Collins, a brash, motivated, and apparently heartless member of the suit brigade.
Peter, though, feels some serious remorse for Neal's predicament, since he's the one who signaled to him to run in the first place. He decides he needs to locate Neal before Collins does. What the plan is once he finds Neal is anybody's guess. One of my biggest questions about Season 4 is how these two will be able to work together again. We didn't get an answer in the first episode, nor did we get any clues.
Monday, July 9, 2012
Previewing Season 4 of 'White Collar'
By: Greg Payne
Suave conman Neal Caffrey will return to television tomorrow night (9:00pm, USA), as White Collar opens its fourth season, but he won't be side-by-side with special agent Peter Burke, catching criminals in New York City.
The last time we saw Neal he was airborne with Mozzie, destination unclear to us. The events of the Season 3 finale, 'Judgement Day,' forced Neal to cut his anklet and get out of town, after it became clear to Peter that Agent Kramer was determined to derail his commutation by slapping cuffs on him for a host of trivial charges (by Neal's standards) and relegating him to the nation's capital to continue his sentence.
Fortunately, Mozzie shipped Neal's portion of the Nazi sub treasure out of town ahead of time, giving the pair enough money to live lavishly for several lifetimes.
Here's what we know so far about Season 4 (spoilers that have surfaced might have already revealed more. I don't look at such things, so I'm only going by what's officially been handed to us):
Suave conman Neal Caffrey will return to television tomorrow night (9:00pm, USA), as White Collar opens its fourth season, but he won't be side-by-side with special agent Peter Burke, catching criminals in New York City.
The last time we saw Neal he was airborne with Mozzie, destination unclear to us. The events of the Season 3 finale, 'Judgement Day,' forced Neal to cut his anklet and get out of town, after it became clear to Peter that Agent Kramer was determined to derail his commutation by slapping cuffs on him for a host of trivial charges (by Neal's standards) and relegating him to the nation's capital to continue his sentence.
Fortunately, Mozzie shipped Neal's portion of the Nazi sub treasure out of town ahead of time, giving the pair enough money to live lavishly for several lifetimes.
Here's what we know so far about Season 4 (spoilers that have surfaced might have already revealed more. I don't look at such things, so I'm only going by what's officially been handed to us):
Monday, July 2, 2012
'Burn Notice' and Being in a Safe, Unsatisfying Relationship
By: Greg Payne
I've been in a television relationship with Burn Notice for about five years now.
And at first, like with any new relationship, things felt fresh. There were new characters in Michael, Fiona, Sam, and Madeline. There was an interesting spin on the tale of the spy, confining Michael to Miami as he sought to figure out who burned him (fired him, in spy talk). There were explosions and manipulations and solid cover stories, and it was all pretty fun for a while.
But after a season or two -- three at the max -- things began to feel a little repetitive. Week after week it was much of the same: Michael begins each episode pursuing who burned him, ends up getting sidetracked by taking on a client, spends the majority of each episode helping said client, and wraps things up by inching ever closer to who's responsible for him no longer having a job. Lather, rinse, repeat.
After a while, being a fan of Burn Notice was like being in a steady relationship with that girl. She's pretty, sure, but not a total fox. But she has such a great personality, and she's so nice, and she means so well that you routinely try and repress the fact that you're not as overwhelmingly attracted to her as you should be, choosing instead to focus on the other positives: Her personality, the way she laughs at all of your jokes, even if they suck, the way she does your laundry and asks you not to move your propped up feet as she vacuums the living room.
At the end of the day you can't escape the feeling that she's safe, that the whole thing is just safe. But for some reason, even though you know you should probably get out early before things get too serious, you keep coming back for more. Even though your heart isn't totally in it, you just can't bring yourself to break up with her because she just means so damn well all the time. So you keep coming back for more, and, shocker, it's always the same. You go to the same restaurant for dinner every Friday, order the same food, are handled by the same waitress, and then you go back home and throw a movie on. The movie might change, but the night doesn't. There's nothing wrong with her. At all. Great girl. You just feel like maybe she's not right for you. She's perfect for someone else. But maybe not for you.
It doesn't take long for you to feel guilty. You watch the supermodels of the television world, like The Wire, and The Sopranos, which is the equivalent of going to clubs and ogling the hottest women there with your tongue hanging out. And then you go home and you feel a completely unjustifiable sense of frustration that she isn't them.
I've been in a television relationship with Burn Notice for about five years now.
And at first, like with any new relationship, things felt fresh. There were new characters in Michael, Fiona, Sam, and Madeline. There was an interesting spin on the tale of the spy, confining Michael to Miami as he sought to figure out who burned him (fired him, in spy talk). There were explosions and manipulations and solid cover stories, and it was all pretty fun for a while.
But after a season or two -- three at the max -- things began to feel a little repetitive. Week after week it was much of the same: Michael begins each episode pursuing who burned him, ends up getting sidetracked by taking on a client, spends the majority of each episode helping said client, and wraps things up by inching ever closer to who's responsible for him no longer having a job. Lather, rinse, repeat.
After a while, being a fan of Burn Notice was like being in a steady relationship with that girl. She's pretty, sure, but not a total fox. But she has such a great personality, and she's so nice, and she means so well that you routinely try and repress the fact that you're not as overwhelmingly attracted to her as you should be, choosing instead to focus on the other positives: Her personality, the way she laughs at all of your jokes, even if they suck, the way she does your laundry and asks you not to move your propped up feet as she vacuums the living room.
At the end of the day you can't escape the feeling that she's safe, that the whole thing is just safe. But for some reason, even though you know you should probably get out early before things get too serious, you keep coming back for more. Even though your heart isn't totally in it, you just can't bring yourself to break up with her because she just means so damn well all the time. So you keep coming back for more, and, shocker, it's always the same. You go to the same restaurant for dinner every Friday, order the same food, are handled by the same waitress, and then you go back home and throw a movie on. The movie might change, but the night doesn't. There's nothing wrong with her. At all. Great girl. You just feel like maybe she's not right for you. She's perfect for someone else. But maybe not for you.
It doesn't take long for you to feel guilty. You watch the supermodels of the television world, like The Wire, and The Sopranos, which is the equivalent of going to clubs and ogling the hottest women there with your tongue hanging out. And then you go home and you feel a completely unjustifiable sense of frustration that she isn't them.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
The Benefits of Exploring New Places While Running
By: Greg Payne
I didn't feel like running very fast last night. Whether it was the rigors of the day, my achy calves, or the threat of a sudden rain storm, I just wasn't in my usual Gung-ho mood about running. But I still wanted to get my miles in.
That's when I remembered a portion of my run from Tuesday, when I ran by this street a few short miles from my house. I had never been up that street in my life, despite always having been within a relatively close proximity to it. And then I thought of the other, similar, streets that weren't far away from that one that I had never been down before. I had never been down these, either. So I came to the conclusion that I would explore these different streets and tucked-away neighborhoods. Because sometimes that's what running is best for. You find reasons to explore places that you wouldn't normally see when you're driving in your car, because, typically, you're always going from Point A to Point B in the most efficient manner possible.
We typically get in the habit of laying out certain routes when we run, and we stick to those like they're the fire escape routes for our schools or offices. We don't dare veer from what we know will work. But running need not be an endeavor of repetitiveness down the same streets, roads, and trails. Running means being in control of your body, and being able to dictate where you send yourself is one of the best things about the sport.
Last night I explored that street, and several others just like it. There was nothing remarkable about them. They housed nice, but not elaborate, homes, many with inground pools and decent-sized yards. These neighborhoods were probably well-regarded for how tucked away they seemed, secluded, pushed back from the busier roads and highways. A 7-year old mastering a bike could feel safe riding along these streets. I don't think I saw a single car driving on any of these roads, and if I did, it wasn't motoring along at a high enough rate of speed to draw my attention. Overall, it was an uneventful visit to these neighborhoods, aside from a very intense stare-down with a German Shepherd that I felt wanted to rip my throat out...But it ran inside, instead. I won.
I didn't feel like running very fast last night. Whether it was the rigors of the day, my achy calves, or the threat of a sudden rain storm, I just wasn't in my usual Gung-ho mood about running. But I still wanted to get my miles in.
That's when I remembered a portion of my run from Tuesday, when I ran by this street a few short miles from my house. I had never been up that street in my life, despite always having been within a relatively close proximity to it. And then I thought of the other, similar, streets that weren't far away from that one that I had never been down before. I had never been down these, either. So I came to the conclusion that I would explore these different streets and tucked-away neighborhoods. Because sometimes that's what running is best for. You find reasons to explore places that you wouldn't normally see when you're driving in your car, because, typically, you're always going from Point A to Point B in the most efficient manner possible.
We typically get in the habit of laying out certain routes when we run, and we stick to those like they're the fire escape routes for our schools or offices. We don't dare veer from what we know will work. But running need not be an endeavor of repetitiveness down the same streets, roads, and trails. Running means being in control of your body, and being able to dictate where you send yourself is one of the best things about the sport.
Last night I explored that street, and several others just like it. There was nothing remarkable about them. They housed nice, but not elaborate, homes, many with inground pools and decent-sized yards. These neighborhoods were probably well-regarded for how tucked away they seemed, secluded, pushed back from the busier roads and highways. A 7-year old mastering a bike could feel safe riding along these streets. I don't think I saw a single car driving on any of these roads, and if I did, it wasn't motoring along at a high enough rate of speed to draw my attention. Overall, it was an uneventful visit to these neighborhoods, aside from a very intense stare-down with a German Shepherd that I felt wanted to rip my throat out...But it ran inside, instead. I won.
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