Star of the Month - Marina Sirtis

The star of the month is Star Trek veteran Marina Sirtis. The actress portrayed counselor Deanna Troi on Star Trek The Next Generation for 7 seasons on TV and 4 feature films. She was born to Greek parents who didn't want her to become an actress. As soon as Marina completed high school, she applied to the Guild Hall School of Music and Drama secretly. After her graduation, she worked in musical theater, repertory, and television. In 1986, she moved to Los Angeles, California. For six months she auditioned for parts but was unsuccessful. Just before she planned to go back home, she got the part of Counselor Deanna Troi in "Star Trek: The Next Generation" (1987). In 1992 she married Michael Lamper, a rock guitarist. This bio info provided by Patrick Ceuppens on IMDB.

For the most part Star Trek is where I have seen Marina the most. She has appeared in other sci-fi films and guest appearances on other TV series, but Star Trek is definitely her bread and butter. And while many fans thought her character was kind of iffy, she was my 3rd favorite, behind only Captain Picard and Worf. Marina will be celebrating her 56th birthday on March 29th, two days before my birthday. She looks great and I for one would love to see the Next Generation gang get back together for one more adventure. She has been acting for over 30 years and I hope that more fans learn more about her.

Thirty-two years later Superman (1978) is still a great film

Recently watched the four disc special edition DVD of Superman and the film is still amazing after 30 plus years. One of the definitive comic book movies ever made, Superman is awesome. And looking back at the film now, I didn't remember how star studded it was. Of course you had Marlon Brando as Jor-El and Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor. And it introduced the world to the perfect actor to portray Superman in Christopher Reeve. But you also had Glenn Ford as Jonathan Kent, Superman's adoptive father; Trevor Howard as Jor-El's council friend; Terence Stamp as the villanious Zod; Susannah York as Lara, Jor-El's wife; Valerie Perrine as Ms. Teshmacher, Lex's girlfriend; Ned Beatty as Otis, Lex's incompetent henchman; Margot Kidder as Lois Lane; and former Little Rascals star Jackie Coogan as Perry White, editor of the Daily Planet. That's a lot of star wattage there for a film based on a comic book character. And that's the thing, the producers and director Richard Donner don't treat this film just as a comic book movie. It's basically a coming of age story of a young man with amazing powers trying to win over a woman. The story works because of the terrific cast assembled especially Hackman as the nefarious and funny Luthor. But a lot of the film hinges on Reeve's performance and he knocks it out of the park. He is Superman now and forever. He perfectly captures the dual identity of Superman and his alter ego, the nerdish Clark Kent. And his chemistry with Kidder is great. Throw in the amazing visual effects and the thrilling music score by John Williams and you have one of the best films ever made. Film-makers of today's films need to take notes to see how it's done. This film has heart and wonderful storytelling. Today's films can have all the CGI they want but if they don't have a good story with characters you care about, then it's all for nothing. Superman gets it right on all counts.
A

My Top Ten Favorite Comic Book Series of 2010

2010 was an ok year for comics. I quit buying some of the big guns like Spider-Man and Batman. But started reading some cool new series that maintained my interest over the entire year. I believe 2011 will be much improved. Anyway here is my top ten list of my favorite comic book series of 2010.

10. SPIDER-GIRL - After reading only one issue, Spider-Girl vaults into my top ten with a return to the fun that's been missing from comics. See my earlier post that describes in detail why I loved issue one of this new engaging series.

9. WITCHBLADE - I have read every single issue of Witchblade since it debut 15 years ago and it's still just as good when it first started. The adventures of New York City detective Sara Pezzini, who also is the bearer of the Witchblade, an ancient weapon that she wears on her hand like a gauntlet. It comes in handy when dealing with the scum of NY, but also attracts all kinds of supernatural attention. Co-created by the recently deceased Michael Turner, Witchblade is a great mix of cops and magic and demons and all that stuff. And Sara Pezzini is one of the best female characters ever created. Here's to another great 15 years.

8. THE SECRET SIX - This cool series focuses on a team of ex-villians who take on even worse villians. The team is probably the most dysfunctional bunch you will come across in comics today. There's leader Scandal, the lesbian daughter of DC baddie mainstay Vandal Savage. Scandal recently lost her lover and is constantly dealing with that, but she still kicks ass with the best of them. There's Catman, an old Batman foe that uses to be an overweight laughinstock back in the 60's but after intense training and losing some pounds, he can go toe to toe with Bats now. Also onboard is Deadshot, the ruthless mercenary who is all about the money and women. Ragdoll is a wacked out guy who is like a junior version of The Joker. Another old Batman villian is on the team as well: Bane. And recent addition Jeanette, a powerful sorceress, who can turn on the evil in a second. This is a very underrated series that more people need to be reading.

7. X-MEN - While nowhere as good as their glory days of Claremont/Byrne or Jim Lee, everyone's favorite mutants still deliver some of that old school action. The current team consists of leader Cyclops; his current squeeze- Emma Frost; Colossus; Wolverine; Rogue; and Magneto. Other members are present as well as the team have created their own sanctuary called Utopia, off the San Francisco Bay. Recent battles have included a mutant hating racist group and the son of Dracula. There are several X titles on the market and I read three of them and they are about equal.

6. SECRET WARRIORS - Exciting series that has former SHIELD director Nick Fury leading a clandestine group of young heroes to take down evil groups such as HYDRA. Fury was doing this sort of thing back in the 60's but the current stories have been modernized and the action amped up. Lots of fighting and explosions and political backroom dialogue make this one of my favorite series. And what's cool is that these guys are on their own...so you won't see The Avengers and the Fantastic Four, which makes the book stand on its own.

5. THE NEW AVENGERS - Brian Michael Bendis continues to work his magic with his take on The Avengers. This group operates out of Doctor Strange's mansion and includes Luke Cage, Spider-Man, Ms. Marvel, Iron Fist, Mockingbird, The Thing and Wolverine (this guy gets around). They operate independently of the other Avenger team and I like it. They got all the drama and heroics you expect from being an Avenger plus the old witty banter Spider-Man, that's missing in Spidey's regular books.

4. BATGIRL - Surprisingly good book in the Batman canon with Stephanie Brown (Tim Drake's ex) taking over the  mantle of Batgirl from silent but deadly Cassandra Cain. And the charm of this series is watching Stephanie learn the hard way of being a hero. She makes mistakes and she's not perfect but with the help of Oracle, she is getting better and better. Very good book with awesome art by Dustin Nguyen.

3. GREEN LANTERN CORPS - The sister title to Green Lantern that focuses on the entire Green Lantern Corp and specifically on Earth Lanterns Kyle Rayner, John Stewart, and Guy Gardner. Outer space thrills and lots of humor from Guy makes GL Corps a great companion book to Hal Jordan's exploits in Green Lantern.

2. GREEN LANTERN - Writer Geoff Johns and artist Doug Mahnke continue to crank this solid book that is still recovering from the events of Blackest Night as Hal has to team with Sinestro, Larfleeze (the Orange Lantern) and Atrocitus (the Red Lantern) to scour Earth for deities that can help the Lanterns cause. Oh did I also mention Parallax is back as well. Johns continues to be the most consistent writer in comics today as he keeps pushing Hal to his limit and sometimes beyond it.

1.  POWER GIRL - If anyone is not reading this great series, then you should. First off writer Judd Winick has taken the B list heroine Power Girl (Superman's cousin), who was always the butt of sex jokes and such and made her into a real character that readers are really intrigued by. Making her the CEO of a company ala Tony Stark was a brilliant move and it splits the time between boardrooms and throwdowns in metropolitan cities. And the art by Sami Basri is sensational. Fluid and jazzy. I started reading Power Girl with issue #1 and haven't regretted it. I love everything about the book and it is my favorite comic series currently out there. I hope Judd and Sami keep up the pace in 2011.

Spider-Girl #1 puts the fun back into comics

I remember when I first started reading comics back in the 80's they were cool. They were entertaining and exciting and most of all, they were fun. Flash forward to present times and comics are all dark and depressing. Marvel had a Civil War just rip through their universe. DC had to deal with Blackest Night. Things are just so bleak. I mean we're talking about people running around in spandex. Come on lighten up. But here comes Spider-Girl to save the day. The story has teen-ager Anya Corazon, the daughter of a famed journalist, doing the super-hero thing in New York. A few years ago Anya was transformed by a strange Spider Society into Arana, a champion who had similar powers to Spider-Man. She recently lost though powers but got trained by the best heroes in the business like Black Widow and Ms. Marvel to compensate. Now she is Spider-Girl, who continue to battle the bad guys, even without powers. The opening scene has our girl tangling with this internet crazed villaness called Screwball who wants to put her exploits all over the web. Spider-Girl ain't having it and quickly dispatches Screwball. Later on, Anya who lives with her dad plans some family time with him until he has to go to work unexpectedly. So he decides that Sue Storm AKA The Invisible Woman of the Fantastic Four would be a suitable replacement. The two gals bond over dinner until Sue gets an emergency call to dispatch some new villainy. She leaves and Anya goes to vent off some frustration by taking on some would be thieves. Of course things turn out to be a lot worse as Anya happens along to see the FF getting hammered by the Red Hulk and it's up to her to save the day. I love this book. It's refreshing and it's fun, like comics should be. Spider-Man now is all dramatic and serious, so I stopped reading his book, but it appears Spider-Girl will get the job down. The writing by Paul Tobin is great and filled with lots of humor. The art by Clayton Henry is clean and sharp. I love Spider-Girl's costume. It's black with a white spider symbol on the front. Kind of like Venom but with better taste. And Anya delivers quips like a seasoned pro. She will remind you of the old Spider-Man, you know when he was cool. So I look forward to reading the adventures of Spider-Girl on a monthly basis.
B+

TRON - LEGACY takes it to a new level...

The long delayed sequel to the 1982 cult classic film Tron arrives in cinema and it's awesome. The sequel picks up with a flashback to the original as game designer/genius Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) is talking to his young son Sam before taking off and never being seen or heard from again. Fans of the original Tron know that Flynn got sucked into the game world he created and had to battle against the Master Control Program. Flash forward 20 years when Flynn's now grown son (played by Garrett Hedlund) ventures into the digital world called The Grid to find out what happened to his father. When arriving he is quickly captured and forced to participate in gladiator type games where the loser is killed. Sam manages to survive and meets the ruler of this world named Clu (also played by Bridges but de-aged thru digital effects to look about 30 years old). Clu wants to track down Flynn as well but for his own personal reasons and Sam is caught in the middle. He is aided by Quorra (Olivia Wilde in a terrific performance) a woman who has been Flynn's protector. The storyline is ok but it does get a little talky and bogged down at times. And the character of Clu's appearance is unsettling. Some times it looks good, other times it looks really fake. That's about my only gripe about this visually stunning film. Well also Bridges as Flynn is a little too much at times. Like he's channeling his character The Big Lebowski for the most part. Hedlund is good as Sam though. But it's Wilde who gives the best performance. She may remind you of Trinity from the Matrix films, except Quorra is a lot more fun and even human, despite being a program, more or less. Wilde infuses Tron with some personality. Of course the visual effects are the main draw of this film and they do not disappoint. The digital world of Tron is a sight to behold. And the action scenes are thrilling from the combat games to what I believe to be the best sequence in the film, the light cycle chase. It just takes hold of you and carries you along for the ride. The thumping music score by Daft Punk is another plus. It positively drives the film with all the beats and pulsating sounds. Tron Legacy is a bold new film that will please fans of the original and bring in newcomers as well. It's a must see.
B

TRON:LEGACY is almost here...

The much anticpated sequel Tron: Legacy is almost here. The film hits theatres next Friday in IMAX 3D. If there is any movie worth seeing in IMAX 3D, it looks to be TRON. Starring Jeff Bridges and Olivia Wilde.

Harry Potter Starts Tonight...

The first part of the final Harry Potter film, The Deathly Hallows begins tonight with midnight showings. Should be a huge film and I can't wait to see it. Plans are to go this week-end. I can't believe the series is coming to an end. I can remember when it all began with the first film back in 2001 and it's one of the few series that actually got better with each new film. So expectations are high for these final 2 films which hopefully will close out this fantastic series on a high note.

Review - Batman: Under The Red Hood (2010)

Another winner from the DC Universe animated films library. These guys may be slacking when it comes to making live action films like their counterpart Marvel does, but they are definitely at the head of the class when it comes making entertaining animated films based on their roster of iconic super heroes. For this one, Under The Red Hood, they adapted one of their more popular stories from the last few years. The story takes place 5 years after the brutal murder of Jason Todd (the second Robin) by the psychotic Joker, which begins this film. After that strong opening, things switch to Gotham when a new player calling himself The Red Hood, arrives looking to shake things up. He targets the crime lords who work for the sadistic crime boss, The Black Mask and manages to interfere with Mask's criminal operations. Enter Batman and Nightwing (Dick Grayson, the first Robin) who stop one of Mask's illegal shipments, which happen to contain the powerhouse android Amazo, who has battled the entire Justice League a few times. The dynamic duo leap into action and it's cool as hell seeing these guys together again just like the good old days. Nightwing spits out the wisecracks left and right and Batman is his usual grim and determined self, but manages a few nice one-liners himself. Black Mask gets wind of all this and hires a crew of armored powered goons to take out Hood and Batman which leads to a fantastic throw-down. After that skirmish, Batman and Hood face off and Batman learns that Hood is indeed Jason Todd back from the dead. Only one person could have pulled that off..Ra's al Ghul, which sends Batman to question him. Things reach a boiling point when Black Mask has had it with these two and breaks The Joker out of Arkham to kill Red  Hood. Which sets up a knock down drag out fight between Batman, Red Hood, and The Joker. Under The Red Hood is one of the best comic book movies ever. And just because it's animated, it does not diminish the quality of the story and characters. I enjoyed this much as I did the live action The Dark Knight. A superlative voice cast which includes Bruce Greenwood as Batman, Jensen Ackles as Red Hood, Neil Patrick Harris as Nightwing, Jason Issacs as Ghul, and John Di Maggio as The Joker. Trust me, Under The Red Hood is truly a sensational film that will not disappoint comic book fans.
B+

Hero Worship in November

Now that Halloween has come and gone, my horror movie postings are done and things are back to normal. For the month of November, in anticipation of the first part of the final Harry Potter film, The Deathly Hallows, Harry and company will be the stars of the month. Harry Potter is one of my favorite film series. I can't wait to see the final 2 parts. So I will review all previous films and posts pics and facts about the series all month long. And the usual reviews and photos of other movies, tv series, comics, etc. Let the magic begin.

KICK-ASS is well, uh, kick ass!

Finally watched Kick-Ass and I loved it. The film is based on the popular graphic novel by Mark Millar and while I read only a few issues of the series, I think the movie delivers on everything promised. Say unlike the Angelina Jolie misguided comic adaptation of Wanted, another Millar book. Kick-Ass takes the comic book movie and turns it on it's head. And it's a joy to behold and an awesome ride to take. The story centers on Dave Lizewski (a solid Aaron Johnson) who is an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan who one day decides to become a super-hero, even though he has no powers, training or meaningful reason to do so. He proposes the question to his friends, why a regular person hasn't done the super-hero thing before. The response is that they would get their ass handed to them. Which Dave learns the hard way. He orders a suit from online complete with mask and fighting batons, takes the name Kick-Ass and promptly tries to fight crime. His initial foray nearly kills him but he becomes better at super-heroics as the movie goes along. Well, he gets a lot of help from a father and daughter team named Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) and Hit Girl (a sensational Chloe Moretz). This duo will remind you of Batman and Robin. Except for that they kill the bad guys, graphically. Hit Girl is just a whirlwind dynamo, proficient in martial arts and firearms. Did I mention she is only 11 years old. Anyway, these heroes stir up trouble for the local bad guy Frank D'Amico (played by Mark Strong), whose own son (Superbad's Christopher Mintz-Plasse) takes on the identity of another hero called Red Mist, who tries to form a friendship with Kick-Ass.

This is one of the most fun movies I have seen in a while. But don't let the costumes fool you, this ain't no kiddie movie. The violence is graphic and brutal. Big Daddy and Hit Girl don't play around. And while the movie centers on Dave's exploits and his repeated attempts at trying to woo fellow class-mate Katie, the movie gets it's biggest kick whenever Hit Girl is onscreen. The fight scenes are incredible and the stunt work amazing. There is also a lot of humor, but this is no spoof. Things get deadly serious when the bad guys strike back at our heroes. And then you realize, these guys don't have any powers and they could die at any moment. Kick-Ass is an awesome movie. Just let me say that after only one viewing, it ranks pretty high on my favorite comic book movies list. Probably in the top 5, definitely top 10.The cast is top notch and the music score is thrilling and rivals Batman, Superman and Spider-Man in that department. I look forward to a sequel. It's rare when you can say that about a movie nowadays.
B+

Kick-Ass (2010, rated R) Stars Aaron Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloe Moretz, Mark Strong, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Yancy Butler, Clark Duke.