I've got another really cool short film for you to watch today. It's an espionage comedy thriller called Spy Vs. Guy. It comes from the filmmaking team Red Giant and was directed by Seth Worley. This is the same guy who brought us these previously posted short films, Order Up, Plot Device, and Tempo. Spy Vs. Guy makes a fantastic addition to the filmmaker's resume.

The story follows a "retired Russian spy [who] hunts down dangerous technology after it falls into unsuspecting hands." Enjoy the show! 

Spy vs Guy from Red Giant on Vimeo.

Johnny Depp is looking to join yet another Disney film. He is in talks to star in the studio's big screen adaptation of the Broadway musical Into the Woods. The movie is set to be directed Rob Marshall, who worked with Depp on Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides. Meryl Streep is also in talks to join the film project as the evil witch.

The story centers on "a childless baker and his wife who attempt to lift a family curse by journeying into the woods to confront the witch that put the spell on them. Along the way, they encounter Rapunzel, Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk’s Jack, Little Red Riding Hood, and other classic fairy tale characters."

This will be a solid project for Disney. I've never seen a stage production of the musical, but I've heard the music. If Depp jumps on board, it will end up doing even better at the box office for them. Depp is one of the most marketable actors working right now. He has a huge fanbase, and the majority of people seem to enjoy watching him in the movies he makes. 

This would be the second big screen musical for Depp who did a decent job in Tim Burton's Sweeny Todd. David Krane (Chicago, Nine) is working on the music for the movie, and the author of the book, James Lapine wrote the script.

What do you think about Depp and Streep joining this musical film project? 

Source: Variety (http://variety.com/2013/biz/news/johnny-depp-in-talks-to-join-disneys-into-the-woods-exclusive-1200419236/)

Art by djprincenorway

Now that we've seen Superman kick a little ass in the latest Man of Steel trailer, director Zack Snyder is opening up a little bit to talk about the character's badassery. In a recent interview with SFX, the director discusses the "more violent experience" of Superman's flight abilities, reinventing Krypton, and of course Henry Cavill's take on the iconic superhero.

I've got to say, it was incredibly awesome to finally see Superman epically punch someone. He also did it while he was flying, which made it even better! When talking about Cavill in the role Snyder revealed the moment they knew they had the right guy,

God, he’s so Supermanish it’s crazy! There was a telling moment – we put him in the Christopher Reeve costume, because we didn’t have a suit yet, we just had the old spandex suit. He stepped out of the trailer and no one laughed. It’s the difference between being Superman and dressing up like Superman. If I’m dressed up like Superman it’s like a Halloween costume. If you’re Henry it’s your clothes. It’s awesome. Watch the movie and you’re like ‘Holy shit, that’s Superman.’ And it’s not weird or crazy, it’s just cool.

You know there are pictures of that somewhere, and I'd love to see them! Maybe one day they'll leak out online. As far as Superman's flight in the movie, the director says,

It’s a more violent experience. It’s raw. It takes effort to do it, and that’s what we were really going for. It’s almost like there’s this kind of Right Stuff quality to it. He’s constantly booming around, accelerating. You think he’s going as fast as he can and then it’s like ‘Yeeaahh!’ He’s always got an extra gear he can use.

That's so cool! I'm excited to see how that looks on the big screen! He then moves on to recreating the world of Krypton... 

I really wanted my Krypton to be this kind of special place that’s immersive and totally different from Earth, but not unbelievable. And ancient. I really wanted to give this ancient feeling to Krypton. I love technology that’s rusty because it’s so old. It’s so advanced, but it’s so old. That was the kind of world that I tried to create. A dying world that’s ancient and torn apart.

I have pretty high expectations, and I'm convinced that Man of Steel is going live up to them. Superman is set to punch holes in our faces on June 14th! To read all of our past Man of Steel movie news click here. 

In Iron Man 3 War Machine was turned into Iron Patriot. I'm not sure what they are going to do with the character moving forward. If they ended up doing a spinoff movie at this point would it be a War Machine movie or an Iron Patriot movie? Either way, it would involve Don Cheadle playing Rhodey, and I'd like to see the spinoff movie happen! 

Cheadle was recently a guest on Empire Magazine's podcast. During the podcast, he had a lot to say about a possible War Machine spinoff movie revealing that it has been discussed, and he offers up some info on where they might go with it.

When we have talked about the [War Machine] spin-off, what the departure point might be for War Machine… [we've discussed that] it might be when he goes rogue, so to speak, and takes a mission that he believes he is morally responsible for but is against policy and does it anyway. What happens when he’s out there and he’s been dishonourably discharged but he still has the suit, or Tony makes him another suit?

And now he’s out there on his own too, but even worse than Tony, because now he’s a fugitive. Because if we wanted to do it, I think the best way to do it would be go darker, to take it and make it even more visceral. Sort of close to the first Iron Man, how it began. Really visceral and really realistic.

I like where he's going with it, I'd watch that War Machine movie! I don't see why Marvel wouldn't make a War Machine movie like this somewhere down they line. Everyone is familiar with the character now. It could end up being a spectacular film. I hope it happens! Head on over to Empire to listen to the full podcast.

What are your thoughts on a possible War Machine movie?

Like the rest of you, I've been wondering how Joss Whedon would bring Clark Gregg‘s Agent Coulson back to life for his new Avengers inspired TV series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Thanks to /Film that bit of information has been revealed. If you don't want to know, then don't read ahead. Obviously it contains SPOILERS. If you don't care about having this spoiled for you then by all means, keep reading! 

First of all, when Agent Coulson was killed off in The Avengers, there was a part of me that thought there is no way they would kill off Coulson. Then Nick Fury gave the team that speech about sacrifice revolving around Coulson's death in order to motivate The Avengers about taking some action. I thought maybe they might have taken the opportunity to fake his death to help motivate them. I heard a lot of other people speculate the same thing. Turns out that's exactly what they did!

In the pilot, it’s revealed Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), the ultimate super spy, faked Agent Coulson’s death on purpose to motivate The Avengers. Some S.H.I.E.L.D. members were in on it (including, possibly, Maria Hill played by Cobie Smulders) but The Avengers were not. Their security clearance wasn’t high enough. Coulson was forced to hold his breath as part of the ruse and that’s a point of contention among his colleagues After the fact, Fury moved him to a remote location until things died down, and then he was reinserted into duty at the time of the show.

So there it is. It's exactly what I thought it would be, but not as exciting or surprising as I was hoping for. It'll do. I'm just happy that Coulson is back and that we'll most likely end up seeing him back in the Marvel movies! Hopefully we get a really good awkward moment in The Avengers 2 when the team finds out his death was all a lie. I don't see how they can ever trust Nick Fury again! 

What are your thoughts on how they get Coulson back? 

Our first look at some footage from Edgar Wright's new comedy adventure The World's End has been included in this 2013 summer movie video promo video. The reel also features footage from several other movies set to be released this summer. The clips from the film are brief, but if you're as excited for the movie as I am then it's worth checking out. 

The story follows five friends in the film played by Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsan, and Paddy Considine who reunite for a pub crawl that escalates into a struggle for humankind's future.

20 years after attempting an epic pub crawl, five childhood friends reunite when one of them becomes hell bent on trying the drinking marathon again. They are convinced to stage an encore by mate Gary King (Pegg), a 40-year old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens, who drags his reluctant pals to their home town and once again attempts to reach the fabled pub, The World’s End. As they attempt to reconcile the past and present, they realize the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind’s. Reaching The World’s End is the least of their worries.

I love the movies that this creative team brings us, and I'm sure we're all going to enjoy their latest adventure! It comes out on August 23rd, 2013. 

Source: Bleeding Cool (http://www.bleedingcool.com/2013/04/26/very-first-footage-from-edgar-wright-and-simon-peggs-the-worlds-end/)

We've got some more Iron Man 3 goodness to share with you today! Marvel has released this new clip from the film featuring Tony Stark saving some people who were sucked out of Air Force One while in mid air. This was a crazy fun and intense scene from the film. Don't worry, the clip doesn't give you the best parts from the scene. It just primes the pump and gets you to want to see more. Iron Man 3 comes out on May 3rd, and you're not going to want to miss it!

Let's get one thing straight. Zach Braff is not the first celebrity to hit up Kickstarter for cash to fund a project. Matt Damon offered to hang out with someone for 10k for a documentary. Former SNL star Horatio Sanz gave the opportunity to enjoy Teppanyaki to help a photography book (check out Vulture for more examples like this). And who can forget the now famous Veronica Mars fiasco that had fans throwing money at the screen?!

Yes, he makes a lot in syndication from Scrubs. Yes, he has a huge house. Yes, he is worth $22 million. I get it. He's rich, and he's asking for money to fund something he will ultimately profit off of. In fact, his Kickstarter goal to make I Wish I Was Here is about the approximate cost it took to make Garden State (which made $36 million). Okay...what was my point again?

Oh yeah. Braff isn't asking you to pay so that he can actually make the movie. He doesn't need you. He's already gotten the film green lit and people who will finance it.  He's asking you to pay so that he can make the movie his way, which is what we would all want anyway, right? Granted, I was just like you until I saw his blurb he posted in Reddit...

Hi bibiani. Take a deep breath. I don't have 22 million dollars. I am putting PLENTY of my own money into this movie. This is not some type of scam. If I wanted to print more money, I'd just go back to TV. This is about making a smaller, personal film for my fans with no compromises. In terms of the script, I only showed it to 2 producers; my favorite ones; (Stacey Sher and Michael Shamberg) They produced Pulp Fiction, Reality Bites, Django, my first movie and many more. They said yes. As I explain on the page, I could have this film financed yesterday if I agreed to deal points I think are unfair. The day will soon come when fans can invest in a film like a stock and reap the financial rewards if it's a success. That is not yet legal. So in the meantime for $10 you can essentially subscribe to an online magazine about filmmaking and I guarantee you, you will like the content I put up. This isn't a con. It's a hail mary pass to make something for you without casting some fuck-head in all the roles.

He's right. In a sense, this is the beginnings of the common man producing. Imagine the day where you can invest money to ensure a certain actor lands himself in the role of a film, and actually benefit when the film is a success. We always gripe about Hollywood, and it's tendency to ruin things, but here we have the beginnings of an effort to change that dynamic. Granted, it's for the selfish ambition of one triple threat, but think to the future. Given the negative publicity he's been given Braff is already at his goal, so why not drink the Kool-aid and wait for the next guy to come with something a little more selfless?  Plus...I thought you guys liked Garden State?!

Producer Jeff Krelitz has optioned the film rights to Image Comics' Hoax Hunters, and he is looking to adapt it into a feature film. I've never heard of the comic until today, but I really like the concept! 

The story focuses on a group of paranormal investigators who debunk mysteries for a TV show called Hoax Hunters. But in reality, the hunters are working hard to cover up and keep the world’s dark forces secret. The comic was created by Michael Moreci and Steve Seeley and was released last year. 

There's a lot of potential here, and it's just a great setting for a supernatural adventure film. Krelitz is currently on the hunt for some writers to pump out a script. 

Have you read the comic, and do you think it will make a good movie? 

Source: THR (http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/peter-panzerfaust-producer-options-hoax-446523?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thr%2Fnews+%28The+Hollywood+Reporter+-+Top+Stories%29)

Here's a cool series of Star Wars inspired propaganda poster art created by illustrator Mike Kungl. It was made in celebration of the annual "May the Fourth Be With You" event on May 4th for ACME Archives Star Wars themed artwork. These will be on display at the Disneyland resort in Anaheim California in the Downtown Disney District on Saturday May 4th from 1 to 6 pm. For more information on the artwork click here.

Kotobukiya does some great work, and this ARTFX statue based on the upcoming Man of Steel version of the character is no different. In some ways, it surpasses some of their best work. Sculpted by Shinya Yamaoka and coming in at 10' tall, this statue impresses from head to toe. From the texture work on the costume itself to the spot on likeness of Cavill, and don't forget the ultra posable cape, which is really nice bonus since you can't actually change his stance in any way. All this will cost you $119 when it comes out in September of this year, but you can head to Koto's store to put your pre-order in now. 

I'm not the biggest Supes fan, but this is pretty much a must own.

What do think of the statue? Will you be putting in an order?

If you still haven't seen David O. Russell's Silver Linings Playbook, you should watch it as soon as you get the chance. It was such a good film and ended up being one of my favorites of last year. For those of you who did see the movie, and enjoyed it, here's an alternate ending featuring Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro and several other cast members. It's basically an extended version of the ending we saw in theaters. 

This is the first poster I've seen for the teenage assassin thriller Violet and Daisy, which stars Saoirse Ronan (The Host) and Alexis Bledel (Sin City) as the young assassins. The film comes from first time feature director Geoffrey Fletcher, and the two actresses play a pair of young assassins whose assistant proves to be much more involved than they had initially planned. James Gandolfini also stars in the movie.

Would you allow yourself to be assassinated by a couple of teenage girls?

Thanks to /Film for the poster. Here's the synopsis:

Violet (Alexis Bledel) and Daisy (Saoirse Ronan) are a pair of gum-cracking teenage assassins who casually snuff out crime figures in New York City, distracted only by the fact that a concert by their favorite pop idol Barbie Sunday has suddenly been canceled.

Determined to raise cash for some Barbie Sunday dresses, the duo takes on a new hit job, only to discover a kind of reckoning in the form of sad-sack shut-in (James Gandolfini) who is dying alone of terminal cancer. He persuades the duo to kill him out of mercy, prompting an odyssey of self-examination that catapults the junior enforcers into a world beyond Barbie Sunday and bullets for pay. 

From Academy Award-winning screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher (PRECIOUS) comes a mesmerizing hybrid of New York City crime fable and existential coming-of-age drama. In VIOLET & DAISY teenage kicks match wits with adult-world turmoil, placing three wounded souls into a line of fire none expected — themselves.

For those of you with young toddlers, I know you've been looking for the perfect Batman themed car seat for them! Well, uncle GeekTyrant is here to help. Your kids will be safer than ever with the protection of Batman's warm caped embrace.

A built-in five-point harness that can be easily tightened with just one hand doesn't hurt either, and with two reclining positions your kids will always be comfy on Batman's lap. As an added bonus, while your kids are young and easy to fool, you can discourage any backseat fighting by reminding them that the Dark Knight is watching their every move.

If you want to purchase one click here. It will cost you about $150, but it's Batman! So it's worth it. 

Ya gotta love the kind of films that the Japanese produce! Here's the first insane teaser trailer for a new bloody violent psychedelic thriller called Why Don't You Play In Hell? Now, I have no idea what is going on in this trailer, but it looks incredibly disturbing in the most awesome way. The movie comes from director Shion Sono who has made films such as Love Exposure and Suicide Club.  So you know you're going to get some fun gory violence. The teaser is only 35 seconds long, but it's a crazy 35 seconds.

As far as the story goes, the director describes it as "an action film about the love of 35mm." That and this teaser are all we have to go off of right now, and it's enough to make me want to see the film!

There's no word on when we'll get to see this in the states, but it opens up in Japan on September 28th. I'm sure it will eventually pop up on Netflix, but I don't want to wait that long to see it!

Seth Rogen and his long time collaborator Evan Goldberg are teaming up again as executive producers to develop a new animated TV series for FX that centers on a unique Bigfoot. American Dad writer and supervising producer Matt McKenna has been brought in to write, and executive produce the series. 

The comedy series is based on the faux autobiography books by Graham Roumieu. They include Bigfoot: In Me Own Words, Bigfoot: Me Write Book, and Bigfoot: I Not Dead. The books follow Bigfoot, who is described as "a bipolar hopeless romantic that lacks the ability to properly express himself, living in both the human and animal world of Pine Falls but not quite fitting in to either one."

It sounds like it could be a really fun show! There's a lot of comedic potential. I like the twist they throw in on the legendary mythical creature.

As you know, J.J. Abrams' loves his mystery box and likes to keep his film productions a secret. I just assumed that was what it would be like while he was making Star Wars: Episode VII, but according to Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy, that won't be the case. During a recent interview with ScreenSlam, she reveals that the amount of secrecy is not going to be “as bad as you think." Of course, they'll monitor what they put out there, but it sounds like she's willing to share what they're doing with the fans, which is pretty cool.

Here's what she said when asked about the importance of secrecy for the movie,

We talk about that all the time. I think the whole issue of confidentiality is gonna be fascinating as we move into making the movie. If we’re shooting anything outside, it’s almost impossible to not have things end up on the Internet. So my feeling is, you need to embrace that, especially with the fans around something like Star Wars. You need to recognize they’re important to the process and acknowledge there are things you’re gonna want to make sure they get to know. So I think that’s something we’re going to monitor, pay attention to and think differently about.

I wonder if Abrams is cool with all this because the guy likes to surround his films with mystery. I'm sure he'll still be able to do that. It's not like the studio is going to tell us everything. 

I think Iron Man 3 had the perfect mix of catering to the fans and secrecy. They gave us a lot of exciting stuff to see, but there were still so many surprises in the movie that I didn't see coming at all. So, even though they released so much, they still managed to keep the main points of the film a secret. 

We've still got a long way to go before we see anything for Star Wars: Episode VII, but before we know it the internet will be flooded with Episode VII goodness!

Here's a really cool poster art series created by Ninjabot called "ORIGIN," and it focuses on the origin stories of our favorite superheroes. There's a Kickstarter campaign currently set up for this project for those of you who want to see the creation of more of this "ORIGIN" art.

Each print has it's own personality, and at it's very core each print represents the story of one character. Although all the prints may not look the same, they still fit together as a series. They were all illustrated the way we thought fit the character, and story best. The most exciting part about this series is that as we created each one, we had no idea what it was going to look like. We tried to follow the story of each character as much as possible. With each illustration, we only tell you as much as you need to know to figure out who they are, and what their story is.

Hope you like what they've released so far!

Here's another dynamic piece of video game fan art created by Rayner Alencar inspired by Portal, and it's called "The Cake is a Lie." To see his previously released Tomb Raider art click here. I like this artist's style. 

Here's a group of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cosplayers who found a pretty cheap-ass way to make their costumes. I can't tell if that's green packing tape or some kind of green plastic wrap. Whatever it is though, it seems to do the trick! Regardless of what they look like, I can't help but think it's uncomfortable as hell.