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Tag Archive: Oscar Isaac


First teaser trailer–and title–arrive for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

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April 12, 2019

The end is near.  At Star Wars Celebration in Chicago today, director J.J. Abrams and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy revealed the title and first teaser for Star Wars Episode IX in a panel hosted by late night TV host Stephen Colbert.  The past returns in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, confirming for many that Abrams is taking a turn from Star Wars: The Last Jedi, including literally mending some of the changes from occurred in that episode of the Star Wars saga.

And this last chapter in the Skywalker family story has plenty of surprises, even in a short teaser.

Check it out, and the seven notable moments we see:

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All the movies you’ll want to see in 2019

Filed under: Fantasy Realms, Movies, Retro Fix, Sci-Fi Café, Superheroes — Leave a comment
December 25, 2018

Merry Christmas!

It’s that time of year again, time to take a look forward at what movies should be on your radar for 2019.  Are you going to see them all?  Heck no.  These are the genre films we think borg readers will want to know about to make their own checklists for the coming year–and they are only the films we know about so far.  We pulled 78 of the hundreds of films that have been finalized or are in varying stages of final production, slated for next year’s movie calendar.

What looks to top the list for most fanboys and fangirls?  The last of the nine films in the Star Wars saga.  Captain Marvel, Avengers: Endgame, and Spider-Man: Far From Home.  Shazam! is DC’s contribution.  Quentin Tarentino returns to movies to direct Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and Martin Scorcese is back with an all-star cast in The Irishman (on Netflix).  M. Night Shyamalan finishes his dark superhero trilogy with Glass.  Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton return in Terminator.  Jordan Peele is back with another horror film with Us.

Do you like sequels?  This is your year.  Another Men in Black, X-Men, Shaft, Happy Death Day, Lego Movie, Hellboy, John Wick, Kingsman, Jumanji, The Secret Life of Pets, How to Train Your Dragon, Fast and the Furious, Zombieland, Addams Family, Charlie’s Angels, Godzilla, Shaun the Sheep, Annabelle,and Stephen King’s It and Pet Sematary—Disney is trying to get you to move into your local theater with another Toy Story, Aladdin, Dumbo, Frozen, and Lion King–all in one year.  Yep, lots and lots of sequels are coming.

Some films don’t have locked-in release dates yet.  Amazon Prime and Netflix haven’t revealed dates for these 2019 releases:

  • Martin Scorcese’s The Irishman, a film about Jimmy Hoffa starring Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel, Ray Romano, and Bobby Cannavale (Netflix)
  • The Kid, a Western biopic with Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Dane DeHaan, and Vincent D’Onofrio (Netflix)
  • The Man Who Killed Hitler Then Bigfoot, starring Sam Elliott (Netflix)
  • 6 Underground, a Michael Bay film starring Ryan Reynolds, Ben Hardy, Dave Franco, and Mélanie Laurent (Netflix)
  • The Last Thing He Wanted, Dee Rees directs Anne Hathaway, Ben Affleck, Willem Dafoe, and Toby Jones; journalist quits newspaper job to become an arms dealer for a covert government agency (Netflix)
  • The Laundromat, Steven Soderbergh directs Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas, James Cromwell, about the Pentagon Papers (Netflix)
  • Radioactive, Rosamund Pike plays Marie Curie, with Anya Taylor-Joy (Amazon)

Some of these films will have revised release dates, or get pushed to 2020.

So grab your calendar and start making your plans–here are the movies you’ll want to see in 2019 (and many you might not):

January

Glass – Superhero, M. Night Shyamalan trilogy part 3, stars Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, James McAvoy; continues where Unbreakable and Split left off – January 18.

Serenity – Mystery/Thriller, stars Anne Hathaway, Jason Clarke, Djimon Hounsou, Jeremy Strong, Diane Lane; sorry, no relation to Firefly – January 25.

King of Thieves – Heist Comedy, stars Jim Broadbent, Tom Courtenay, Charlie Cox, Michael Gambon, and Ray Winstone – January 25.

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Opening weekend review–Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, a great lead-off to the holiday movie season

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December 16, 2018

Review by C.J. Bunce

The Christmas movie releases began big this weekend with the first out of the gate: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, an animated superhero movie in a year that has seen the animated Incredibles 2 and live action versions of Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War, Ant-Man and The Wasp, Deadpool 2, and Venom.  Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse holds its own against them all.  A rich story and layered characters in an easy to digest, familiar, multi-verse story make this rise above other recent animated superhero shows.  In-world references to comic books–sporting the main characters on the covers, multi-view panel sequences, and even first-person narrative captions appear pulled from the pages of any real-world Spider-Man book.

The cast list has been publicized for months, and as the trailers promised, the voice actors take the film from good to great.  Familiar–maybe over-used–Spidey villain Kingpin, played by Liev Schreiber, is trying to take control of all the multi-verses with a new weapon that initially pulls in Spider-heroes from five other universes.  Shameik Moore plays star Miles Morales, a new Spider-Man trying to find his way at the beginning stage of his journey in his universe along with Chris Pine (Star Trek, Jack Ryan, Wonder Woman) as your more familiar neighborhood Spider-Man.  After an explosion Miles catches up with another Spider-Man, Peter B. Parker, a view of Parker in another dimension 20 years older, played perfectly (and hilariously) by Jake Johnson (Jurassic World, The Mummy, New Girl).  They are soon joined by cool and confident Spider-Woman aka Gwen “Spider-Gwen” Stacy, voiced by Hailee Steinfeld (BumbleBee, True Grit, Ender’s Game).  Early scenes present lots of great action, including a memorable scene where Miles drags Peter to safety aboard a speeding commuter train, but this story is more about sentiment and humor.  And it gets better.

Three other Spider-heroes arrive.  Rounding out the cast previewed in the trailers is Spider-Man Noir, allowing the great Nicolas Cage another superhero role after his performance as Big Daddy in Kick-Ass (after almost starring in a Tim Burton Superman movie years ago).  A lifelong comic book connoisseur, Cage was born to portray superheroes, and here his Spider-Man is pure perfection.  The oldest of spin-off Spideys emerges with the entrance of Peter Porker aka Spider-Ham (John Mulany), first seen in print back in 1983.  And a newer webslinger, the anime heroine Peni Parker from Earth-14512 (Kimiko Glenn), complete with her high-tech “SP//dr Suit,” gets her own great scenes.  The film features plenty of surprise characters, too.

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Star Wars Resistance preview–Disney brings a new chapter to the Star Wars saga

Filed under: Sci-Fi Café, TV — 2 Comments
August 19, 2018

Following up after the bittersweet end to Star Wars Rebels earlier this year, Disney and Lucasfilm Animation has revealed the first trailer for the next chapter in the Star Wars saga, Star Wars Resistance.  Star Wars Resistance will look backward in time once again, but instead of looking to the period before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story as with Star Wars Rebels, this time we’ll see an as-yet unseen period before the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.  Originally expected to have a new anime-inspired look, it’s subtle.  Resistance appears to be interchangeable with the style in Rebels.  (It worked for Rebels so we’re not complaining).  But it does have some common visual elements with classic Speed Racer with its racing suits–and lots of racing.

Lucasfilm Animation creator Dave Filoni leads the series, which features Kasuda Xiono, a new Resistance pilot who will be spying on the First Order with the help of BB-8 and Poe Dameron.  Christopher Sean (Hawaii Five-O) plays Xiono, with Oscar Isaac returning as the voice of Poe and Gwendoline Christie will again voice Captain Phasma.  Rachel Butera (Family Guy) takes on the role of General Leia Organa.  Other actors include Bobby Moynihan (Saturday Night Live)as Orka, Suzie McGrath (Law & Order: UK) as Tam Ryvora, Scott Lawrence as Jarek Yeager (Legion, Star Trek Into Darkness), Myrna Velasco (Elena of Avalor) as Torra Doza, Josh Brener (Star Wars Rebels) as Neeku Vozo, Donald Faison (Scrubs) as Hype Faizon, and Jim Rash (Community) as Flix.

“The idea for Star Wars Resistance came out of my interest in World War II aircraft and fighter pilots,” said Filoni in an earlier interview.  “My grandfather was a pilot and my uncle flew and restored planes, so that’s been a big influence on me.  There’s a long history of high-speed racing in Star Wars, and I think we’ve captured that sense of excitement in an anime-inspired style, which is something the entire team has been wanting to do for a long time.”

Here’s the first trailer and several new images for Star Wars Resistance:

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New animated Star Wars series is coming to Disney Channel and DisneyXD

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April 29, 2018

Although we’ve seen the end of Star Wars Rebels with its finale airing just last month, DisneyXD is revving up its Star Wars animated universe again this Fall with an all-new adventure.  Star Wars Resistance will look backward in time once again, but instead of looking to the period before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story as with Star Wars Rebels, this time we’ll see an as-yet unseen period before the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.  This time the show will also have a new look–Star Wars Resistance will be inspired by anime series, and it will also air on the Disney Channel in addition to DisneyXD.

Familiar Lucasfilm Animation creator Dave Filoni will be leading the series, which will feature a new Resistance pilot named Kazuda Xiono, who will be spying on the First Order with the help of BB-8 and Poe Dameron.  In addition to Oscar Isaac returning as the voice of Poe, Gwendoline Christie will voice Captain Phasma.  Actors set to co-star in the series in as-yet undisclosed roles include Bobby Moynihan (Saturday Night Live), Christopher Sean (Hawaii Five-0), Suzie McGrath (Law & Order: UK), Scott Lawrence (Legion, Star Trek Into Darkness), Myrna Velasco (Elena of Avalor), Josh Brener (Star Wars Rebels), Donald Faison (Scrubs), Jim Rash (Community), and Rachel Butera (Family Guy).

The only official art released for the series so far is the logo above featuring BB-8 and a yellow-trimmed X-Wing Fighter.

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Opening weekend review–The Last Jedi, a different but familiar feeling Star Wars movie

Filed under: Fantasy Realms, Movies — 1 Comment
December 15, 2017

Review by C.J. Bunce

As you will no doubt hear as moviegoers walk out of theaters this holiday season, Star Wars: The Last Jedi is a very “different” Star Wars movie.  That said, despite writer/director Rian Johnson’s assertions to the contrary, it is very much an echo of the second film of the original trilogy, The Empire Strikes Back, with several parallel elements you’ll encounter along the way.  Picking up where director J.J. Abrams left off two years ago in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Johnson seems to take the bits and pieces of questions raised in Abrams’ film, answers a few, dismisses a few, and ignores the rest, perhaps for Abrams to pick them up again as he re-takes the reins in two years for the final film in the Skywalker family saga.  So many questions seem to have been definitively tied up by the end of The Last Jedi, moviegoers are now left to ponder for the next two years, “What could Episode IX possibly be about?”

The Last Jedi is most intriguing when it emulates some of the surprises and emotional impact of last year’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story–a bold, unique film that falls outside the three trilogies of franchise films, but provided a fantastically gritty, nostalgic, and heart-pounding story that put the “war” back in Star Wars.  An opening scene in The Last Jedi featuring the heroic death of a new character made me sit up thinking another gritty war movie was coming (only swap a guerilla land war for World War II-inspired bombing runs).  Heroism is the theme of The Last Jedi, and every character gets a chance to be a hero, but the damage is not as gut-wrenching as Rogue One.  Yet, depending on who your favorite character was in The Force Awakens, every fan should find something in The Last Jedi to be happy about.  Even if it might not offer up the excitement of the original trilogy, the third of the new annual holiday Star Wars adventures will be a great excuse to get together with family and friends for the event itself–annual Star Wars movies are becoming what the annual Christmas Special has become for Doctor Who fans, an event that for many will be bigger than whatever you think of the film.

The actors are top-notch in The Last Jedi, including Carrie Fisher in her final performance as General Leia Organa, although Hamill’s work stands out and could easily merit an Oscar nomination.  Alec Guinness’s genius as the similar Jedi wizard Obi-Wan Kenobi of the original Star Wars was in his reserved performance and iconic utterances of wisdom.  Here Hamill shows that Hollywood has missed the boat for 40 years by not featuring him regularly in mainstream films, bringing a powerful and emotional performance from beginning to end.  And gone are the days of Star Wars’ clunky dialogue–Johnson’s success is pulling out the stilted exchanges Star Wars had began to become known for.

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Poe Dameron replica helmet scores high marks as a top pick from Star Wars’ Force Friday II

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September 4, 2017

Following up on last year’s successful Black Series Imperial Stormtrooper Electronic Voice Changer Helmet from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and the Black Series Kylo Ren Voice Changer Helmet from Star Wars: The Force Awakens is the new September release of the Black Series Poe Dameron Electronic Helmet.  A screen accurate helmet at a price point of about $80?  That’s an amazing find.  Even a dedicated fan with skills could hardly build a replica helmet for so little.  The Black Series Poe Dameron Electronic Helmet hit stores across the country–as well as internationally–Friday as part of Disney’s unprecedented Force Friday II marketing push.  And we thought Disney came up with an enormous volume of tie-ins for the first Force Friday!  This helmet emerges as a leading contender in a field of some impressive action figures, household items, games, and toys.

A replica of Oscar Isaac’s X-Wing pilot helmet from the current trilogy era of the Star Wars universe features a surround sound speaker system that produces for the wearer clear and clean X-Wing and TIE fighter communication sounds, plus familiar beeps from Dameron’s trusty droid sidekick BB-8.  What hasn’t been touted–but should be–is the care given to the interior, which rivals even studio built props in design and comfort, featuring quality-designed ear muffs and soft finished edges.  Ultimately the new helmet may be a strong competitor with Anovos’s high-end $200-$665 range replica helmet series (both series are licensed replicas, with Anovos’s typically cornering the higher end of the market quality and price-wise).  Is it screen-accurate?  It’s close, and those wanting to go further could make upgrades on their own.  Is it collector grade?  Sure, and it displays quite well.

Details include scuff/wear built into its design.  At three pounds it’s built sturdy, but light enough to remain comfortable, making it a good option for cosplayers.  A retractable polarizing visor provides a classic nostalgic feel and the adjustable inner helmet padding further helps the wearer feel right at home.  All you need is a flight suit (and maybe an X-Wing fighter).

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Now streaming… X-Men: Apocalypse now on Amazon Prime

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March 25, 2017

x-men-apocalypse-quicksilver-rescue-scene

Review by C.J. Bunce

Superheroes in movies and television.  It’s the entertainment explosion of the past ten years, beginning with Jon Favreau’s Iron Man in 2008.  Yet after only ten years, after so many Marvel lookalikes and too many dark Dark Knights, what superhero shows rise above the rest?  All fanboys and fangirls have an opinion.  The best part is that there truly is something for everyone.  Maybe you like Netflix’s cool and gritty Luke Cage.  Or maybe the CW parade of DC series is your thing.  If you’re like us, you love Ant Man and Guardians of the Galaxy over all the Marvel and DC team-up movies.  Maybe you like it all.  Director Bryan Singer created another X-Men entry that was released last summer, overlooked by many, but a solid entry in the X-Men cinema archive: X-Men: Apocalypse.  It’s streaming now on Amazon Prime, and it’s not to be missed, especially for Logan fans collecting all of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine appearances and everyone looking for a great superhero assemblage.

How often do superhero movies, or any other drama, sci-fi, fantasy, or action franchise movie, threaten stakes as great as the end of the world?  How many actually take you through an apocalypse?  X-Men: Apocalypse delivers the rampage and destruction you read about as a kid inside the pages of Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars.  If you enjoy seeing great superhero powers on the big screen, as with X-Men: Days of Future Past, Evan Peters’ Quicksilver remains the defending champion.  He gets even more character development and screen time in X-Men: Apocalypse.

X-men plane

As kids we debated over what power would allow you to triumph over your superhero peers, and Singer must have done the same thing and landed with the same answer.  Speed.  Despite giving us the best superhero TV series of the 1980s and today with its two looks at Barry Allen/The Flash, DC Entertainment has not yet shown us all a speedster could do.  Will that happen in Justice League this year?  Any speedster work will be compared to Quicksilver.  Until that film hits theaters, X-Men: Apocalypse is worth a second look for Quicksilver’s big scene alone.  But there’s more.

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Review–X-Men: Apocalypse… Bryan Singer’s X-Men franchise continues to top the superhero team-up genre

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July 25, 2016

x-men-apocalypse-quicksilver-rescue-scene

Amid all the chaos and bombardment of superhero movies in the theaters these days, it’s often difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff.  Not so long ago if someone asked about your favorite superhero movie you’d probably name it without hesitation.  These days?  You probably will need to mull it over in light of so many quality films.  Of the classic films I would have named Christopher Reeves’ Superman.  Of the Marvel Cinematic Universe I once would have named the first Iron Man.  Then after many Marvel lookalikes and too many dark Dark Knights, the three that rise to the top are Guardians of the Galaxy, Ant-Man, and X-Men: Days of Future Past.  Then Bryan Singer created another X-Men entry released this summer and I’m hedging again.  X-Men: Apocalypse, still in theaters, is exactly the movie I dreamed of when I was a kid reading comic books.

How often do superhero movies, or any other drama, sci-fi, fantasy, or action franchise movie, threaten stakes as great as the end of the world?  How many actually take you through an apocalypse?  X-Men: Apocalypse delivers the rampage and destruction I read as a kid inside the pages of Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars.  I was never an X-Men fan before X-Men: Days of Future Past and Jason Aaron’s Wolverine and the X-Men monthly series, so I haven’t followed the ins and outs of the team for decades to know whether the movies are “loyal” enough for diehard readers.  But I do know what great superhero powers look like on the big screen, and as with X-Men: Days of Future Past, Evan Peters’ Quicksilver remains the best realized superhero on-screen.

x-men-apocalypse-008

As kids we debated over what power would allow you to triumph over your superhero peers, and Singer must have done the same thing and landed with the same answer.  Speed.  Despite giving us the best superhero TV series of the 1980s and today with its two looks at Barry Allen/The Flash, DC Entertainment has not yet shown us all a speedster could do.  Will that happen in Justice League next year?  Until then, X-Men: Apocalypse is worth a first or second look for Quicksilver’s big scene.  And more.

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First look–Quicksilver joins the X-Men in new Apocalypse trailer

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March 18, 2016

Quicksilver X-men Apocalypse

One of the best directors of his generation, Bryan Singer teased us in 2014 with the year’s best superhero movie, X-Men: Days of Future Past.  He teased us by showing us Quicksilver, the young speedy mutant, but only for a small portion of the film.  Played by Evan Peters, the scene where he breaks Michael Fassbender’s Magneto out of a Pentagon prison is the single best transformation of a superhero from comic book to screen.  His disarming of guards in slow motion to the tune of Jim Croce’s “Time in a Bottle” is now the stuff of legendary cinema, and that just left fans begging for more.

And it looks like Singer is going to deliver what X-Men fans want the most: More Quicksilver.

Beast and Quicksilver

Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Oscar Isaac is Apocalypse, the original mutant the film’s (and the Marvel Comics Universe’s) biggest modern villain.  Rounding out the cast are actors both old and new to the franchise: James McAvoy as Professor X, Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique, Nicholas Hoult as Beast, Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, Tye Sheridan as Cyclops, and Kodi Smit-McPhee as Nightcrawler.

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