Cinema Static

The other day someone pointed me to a website that was reporting on the Flight 447 tragedy.  Or more specifically, on how they were reporting with their exclusive images from the crash.  I was so flabbergasted I just couldn’t figure out which website of mine to put this on, but since we’re talking Lost, I thought what the heck, let’s go here.

According to what we’re seeing in the video, a news station is saying that the images they’ve got and show us, are the last moments for some aboard the doomed Flight 447.  I’m thinking that they’re banking no one watches TV other than their own broadcast.

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Katie Cassidy on Harper's Island

Last weeks episode of Harper’s Island actually jumped the shark for me.

I’ve been ranting and raving about the quality work they’ve been doing with the story and such and then suddenly, they make a liar out of me, sort of.

Last week during the episode, there were two blatant opportunities for our beleaguered group of islanders to gun down their pesky murdering stalker.

On both occasions, while everyone was in-frame, no one did anything and there was some lame ass excuses for why they didn’t.

This was the first time I started questioning the writing.  What?  Now that the show is in it’s graveyard time slot, we’re letting the camera-man write the episodes?

I hate being vague, but if you saw the episode, you just might know what I mean while those who haven’t I am not going to spoil it for you.

Last year at the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con, the event was ruled by several big named movies that ranged from youthful vampires to illegal vigilantes.  TV was more a side-note than anything else.

This year at the 2009 Comic-Con, things will be a bit different as television programming seems to have a bigger presence than last year.

For instance, the Warner Brothers Television Group will have 11 different panels for their shows.  That’s a studio best for them.  ABC Studios will have 7 panels.  20th Century Fox will have 9 panels.

Do you think your favorite television show will be represented?

Link to my full article on Screen Rant:“The Television Presence At San Diego Comic-Con 2009″

(If there are any updates added to this list, I will let you know here on CS)

6-29-09:  More sadness strikes the entertainment industry as pitchman Billy Mays has passed away.

It appears he passed away in his sleep and was discovered by his wife Sunday morning.

In what may be a related event… or not, he was involved in an airline incident where his U.S. Airways flight had made an emergency landing.

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Have you ever wondered why some TV shows are canceled due to supposedly low ratings when it seems like they have a strong following? Sometimes there are obvious reasons - like when CBS scheduled Jericho up against Fox’s American Idol, or Journeyman possibly being a victim of bad timing with the writers’ strike and too many reality show hitting the networks.

One of the systems that has the biggest impact on what we get to watch on television is called the Nielsen Ratings. It was founded by Arthur Nielsen in 1923 and through statistical sampling measurements, extrapolates what audiences are watching across the country. This information is important to advertisers who pay dearly for much coveted time slots in which they know the audience is watching.

Click to continue “Do Networks Ignore Sci Fi Fans?” (Link continues to my full article on Screen Rant)

The Philanthropist, starring James Purefoy (HBO’s Rome, A Knight’s Tale, Resident Evil) as Teddy Rist, started off by confusing me a bit but by the end of the episode, I found the story to have a compelling emotional element that kept me tuned in.

The show opens in the middle of a chase scene where Rist is being fired upon by some locals while on a river bank, barefoot in a jungle somewhere.  We then jump to a bar scene where he’s chatting with a young lady while she’s bar tending and he explains in a backtrack sort of fashion how he came to being shot at on this riverbank.

They use this venue of Rist talking with the bartender to recant a quick history of how he got to this point of time.

Click to see my full article “The Philanthropist: Review & Discussion” at Screen Rant.

This is a DVR spoiler-free review.

“Follow me through the mirror, down the rabbit hole.  Trust me, it has to be this way.”

A rabbit hole indeed.  Ronald D. Moore has done it again giving us some brilliant writing with Virtuality as far as I’m concerned and Fox not sticking to the original plan of creating a series out of his concept is not only their loss, but ours as well.

We have 12 astronauts on a 10-year journey that becomes a potential rescue mission to save humanity.  Their space faring vessel is named the Phaeton.

The show opens with a scene that introduces the Virtual Reality system (VR) world from the ship.  We’re also almost immediately introduced to the glitch that we’ve been told about in the studio press releases.  I think glitch might be an understatement, but that’s just me.

Continue to my full article “Virtuality: A Review And Discussion” on Screen Rant.

I watched Mutant Chronicles on Sci-Fi Channel the other night.  Quickly stated, I go into these Saturday night movies with tongue in cheek so shaky quality, infantile efx and real shaky dialog is expected.  With that said, I think the IMDB rating of 5.5 / 10 might have been a touch high.

I don’t like splitting scale numbers, and I am not sure I can go higher than a 5 on this one.  Maybe 6 if scenes and dialog weren’t dragged out unnecessarily.

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“You’re right behind me, aren’t you?”

Dog Soldiers was released in the UK in 2002 and never made it to a release in the United States. I don’t know why, but we all missed out due to that decision in this short lived, one-time franchise. (I say franchise because I can hope, can’t I?)

If you like werewolf movies and you like quality werewolf movies, boy do I have a treat in store for you.

Dog Soldiers sort of has three beginnings, but one definitive ending. Oh where do I start?

It’s the classic movie start: We see a couple camping out in the woods. It’s night time and they hear something outside the tent. We are then treated to the tent zipper being pulled ever so slowly down. Out the opening the screaming girl goes, followed by the blood spattered boyfriend. Their names are irrelevant at this point! There’s somethin’ in the woods folks.

We then switch to a special ops training test to establish a few characters. Trainee Private Cooper (Played by Journeyman star Kevin McKidd) is finishing up a special forces test. The man in charge, a cold war-hardened soldier, Capt. Ryan, (Liam Cunningham) in his own, special ops sort of way, congratulates Cooper on not being caught so quickly, but as one last test, orders the soldier to shoot the dog they used to track him down with. Cooper refuses the order on grounds it is not necessary to shoot THAT dog. In making a point Capt. Ryan caps the dog without an ounce of emotion. Needless to say, Pvt. Cooper is booted from the unit and his animosity is initiated with the cold blooded Ryan.

Click to continue “SR Picks: Dog Soldiers” (Continued at Screen Rant)

Usually The Sci-Fi Channel plays their tongue in cheek Saturday night movies and it’s always a surprise when it comes up to be quality content.  It’s fun, but not super duper quality.

On occasion, they air real movies on the weekend and that mixes it up a bit.

This Saturday, June 27th, (And I believe also Sunday evening on Sci-Fi) they’re airing Mutant Chronicles with Thomas Jane, Ron Perlman, John Malkovich and Sean Pertwee.

The cast alone would seem to warrant something to look forward to and yet, maybe not.

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During the break between seasons a few bits are developing in regards to the cast of the upcoming 9th season of Smallville.

The latest news I’ve seen is that Brian Austin Green is coming on board the Smallville to play the role of John Corben - or you may know him better as “Metallo.”

Click to continue “Smallville Season 9 Casting News & Other Notes”

(Link to my full article on Screen Rant)

Can it be true?  A rumor is starting to drift about the web-i-verse that there’s a movie on the horizon that will culminate Smallville’s run on The CW.

In the working theory, it will be called “Metropolis”, and it could be slated for a Christmas 2010 airing on the small screen.

Click to continue (on Screen Rant) “Rumor Mill Control: Smallville Movie On Horizon?”

This weekend brings in the much publicized Transformers movie and multiple Brandon Routh pieces.  We see yet another project from Joan Cusack and a sighting of the quietly popular Bill Pullman.  And fan of Kathy Bates will be happy to see her back on the screen in a new film.

Check out what’s happening this weekend!

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Welcome to my weekly TV Wrap Up.

This week we’re chatting about the NCIS cast, Chuck season 3 insights, a bit of Fringe cast news and I ask a question about a character from Lost.  I’m also going to touch on yet another alien invasion show from TNT.  Also have some details on the DVD / Blu-ray release of season one of Lie To Me.

I wrap it up with my usual look at how shows did in the ratings from last week.

Let’s get on with it.

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NCIS Spin-off Adds Cast

Linda Hunt will be joining the cast of the NCIS spin-off as a hard-nosed former film industry technician who oversees the “backroom” support staff.

Of note, Louise Lombard was let go from the staff, as the cast seems to be constantly evolving.

Is it me, or will we have a hard time getting past the ‘ghosts’ from Linda Hunt’s past?

Source:  Entertainment Weekly

Click to continue “Weekly TV Wrap Up - June 25, 2009″ (Opens my full article on Screen Rant)

When it comes to science fiction, we enjoy the idea of what could be, and what might be vs. the hard core reality of the underlying science to our favorite shows and movies.

Some older movies hit on a subject matter that is touched upon in many a retelling, paying true homage to the genius that invented them. Some newer tales hit us with such obscure new angles on a story that the retelling of it would be a mere rip-off.

I’ve had interesting arguments with the scientist’s I work with about the science in our beloved Sci-Fi shows. I don’t think they’ve caught on , but I like tormenting them.. They do set themselves up for it.

It’s funny when they repeatedly badger my favorite shows for scientific flaws like there’s no sound in space? Duh.

Click to continue “Scientists vs. Science Fiction” (Link continues to my full article on Screen Rant)