The New Continuity: How to handle prequels during movie marathons

Prequels are a big part of mainstream cinema these days. They can give additional insight to the original film(s), or even tell the story from an entirely new perspective. Either way, they can be a really engaging part of a broader story.

Alternately, they can also cause quite a debate when planning a series marathon: Should the films be watched in chronological order based on release, or based on the story itself?

This question came up when a friend posted on her Facebook page about what order she should watch all six STAR WARS films. Should she start with the original trilogy (Episodes 3-6) or the prequel trilogy (Episodes 1-3)? Many people were championing the original films first, but the answer wasn’t that easy for me to muster. Continue reading “The New Continuity: How to handle prequels during movie marathons” →

STAR WARS television series 3-5 years from happening

It’s no secret that the STAR WARS television series that we were once promised many years ago has hit a wall, keeping it from production. A couple of weeks ago, we got word that there was already at least 50 hours of content written, but the big issue was finding a way to make what was written on a television budget.

Now we are getting a little more clarification about the budgetary issues, and some plot information about the show. This quote comes from producer Rick McCallum about the show, which is supposed to be filmed in the Czech Republic:

“The TV series is on hold, but that has nothing to do with the Czech Republic; it has to do with [the episodes being] so ambitious…We have 50 hours of third-draft scripts, but the problem we have is there is a lot of digital animation; we don’t have the technology yet to be able to do them at a price that is safe for television. Since we would be financing them, it would be suicide for us to do this [now]. So we are going to wait three or four years.” Continue reading “STAR WARS television series 3-5 years from happening” →

STAR WARS television series update from George Lucas

It goes without saying that the STAR WARS series is one of the biggest franchises in existence. The films changed the way that special effects work, and told one of the grandest stories in film. Not only that, but they are generally universally loved and generations of fans have obsessed over them for years.

There has been talk of a live-action series for years, and in 2009 creator George Lucas admitted that the series would take place in between the third and fourth film. Now we have an update from Lucas himself. Apparently, a lot more progress has been made than we ever expected, unfortunately it doesn’t seem like we are any closer to the series being released. The issue seems to be purely money-related. Continue reading “STAR WARS television series update from George Lucas” →

Lucasfilm behind animated STAR WARS sitcom

In the past couple years both Robot Chicken and Family Guy have produced full-length episodes spoofing the STAR WARS franchise. The most amazing part about them was complete backing and permission to use the STAR WARS music by Lucasfilm. Now in an even more surprising turn, Lucasfilm now wants to take the plunge and make their own comedic STAR WARS animated series. Continue reading “Lucasfilm behind animated STAR WARS sitcom” →

M. Night Shyamalan discusses THE LAST AIRBENDER

It is no secret that I’m obsessed with the surprisingly amazing Nickelodeon cartoon series “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” I resisted watching the series for a very long time, but when I did, I was instantly hooked. The scope of the series is so big, and I think should transition to a film trilogy extremely well. Once M. Night Shyamalan was attached as director, I knew this film would end up being one of my most anticipated films of the year.

To help build even more momentum behind this already surefire hit film Shyamalan talked to the Los Angeles Times Hero Complex blog about what interested him in the film. Continue reading “M. Night Shyamalan discusses THE LAST AIRBENDER” →