The Green Lantern live action film trailer is officially out. From the looks of it, it'll be giving Green Lantern fans a lot to look forward too. I'm a little bothered by the odd looking Domino mask and Blake Lively's deadpan attempt at "acting". Otherwise, it's looking pretty sweet. Of all the superhero concepts, this one has the possibility to be a 'Star Wars'-like franchise. Comics scribe Geoff Johns has done a brilliant job to establish a rich mythology surrounding the rings in which different colored rings represent different states of emotion. It's a clever concept that could lead to an awesome series of epic action films. Let's hope they find the necessary success (and quality) to make it happen on the big screen!

One of the more visually interesting things I saw at SDCC 2010 were the character statues Gentle Giant was displaying from Zach Snyder's SUCKER PUNCH film. Say what you will about Zach Snyder's ability as a director, but there's no question that he tries hard to push the look of Hollywood blockbuster films. With 300, he was going for a polished version of Frank Miller's art style. With WATCHMEN, he was going for a polished version of Dave Gibbons'. With SUCKER PUNCH, I see a lot of Maschien Krieger's Kow Yokoyama's design aesthetic... with bits of various anime aesthetics thrown in for the hell of it.

I love the Ma.K-like mech design. I also love the tough retro/fantasy/military feel to the female characters (HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL's Venessa Hudgen's is trying hard to prove she's a woman!). But the trailer feels a little too ambitious to really work. Fire-breathing dragons?! Machine-gun armed Samurais?! Whoa... slow down a bit, Mr. Snyder!

Besides all that, I'm mightily intrigued. If you want more info, I recommend checking out ToysREvil's wonderful collection of all things SUCKER PUNCH.

I just finished watching EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP, a film best known for it’s association with mysterious street artist Banksy. It’s a brilliant and entertaining film that, as with all things Banksy, has you wondering how much of it is sincere and how much of it is a big joke. Either way, it was a fun exploration on art and its ‘importance’ in our world.

The film follows Thierry Guetta, an obsessive videographer, as he follows his cousin, Space Invader, and other street artists ‘bomb’ cities worldwide with their artwork. As Thierry casually documents the evolution of Street Art, he befriends Street Art pioneers like Shepard Fairey and soon becomes obsessed with his “golden egg”: the opportunity to film the mysterious and uber-famous British Street Artist known as Banksy. By chance, Thierry ends up meeting Banksy and is inspired to first create the definitive Street Art documentary film and ultimately become a street artist himself under the moniker of MBW (Mr. Brainwash).

The film celebrates the energy and ambition of Street Art while, at the same time, diffusing it’s importance and relevance. Much like Banksy’s art, you’re not really sure if it’s meant to be taken seriously or to be laughed at (probably a bit of both)... and in so doing, it has a strange way of legitimizing Street Art (and Art in general) while simultaneously pinpointing its absurdity.

If this film is showing nearby, you MUST watch it. Whether you’re in on the joke (if there even is a joke), appreciate Street Art, or just want to understand what all the fuss is with that ‘Street Art’ stuff... this film has to be experienced.

We all know the beast of a Pro Basketball player that Lebron James has become (but lets hold off the "Greatest of All Time" chatter until AFTER he's one a few NBA Championships), but what was he like before all the celebrity attention? The documentary MORE THAN A GAME by Kristopher Belman is an insightful look at both Lebron James and the group of kids with which he played, grew to love, and master the game of basketball. The tight bonds of friendship began in 8th grade as their success on the Basketball League courts led to a National Championship game in Florida. That tight bond influenced the 4 friends to attend St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, instead of their local high school, because, as a 4 foot 10 inch tall Freshman, Dru Jones III didn't believe that the local High School basketball coach could look past his height to see his great dedication, passion and skill for the game of basketball. Their time at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School coincided with the Lebron James ascension to super-stardom as a 17 year-old basketball phenom... but ultimately showcased that 4 young guys with a goal can make great things happen.

By focusing on the group of 4 kids (5 later in the movie) you end up getting to indirectly know Lebron James way more than through a traditional spotlight documentary. The history these kids shared together on the basketball court had an undeniable influence on Lebron James, the other players, and the coach of the team. Coach Dru Jones (father of Dru Jones III) interviews brought a great sense of purpose and heart to what they accomplished and I appreciated the sincerity with which he spoke as he often struggled between being a competitive coach and a father with his role as father to Dru Jones III often suffering.

I love a great Sports story. With or without Lebron James, this is one of the better ones I've watched in some time.

(A quick sidenote for anybody that saw the film: Does anybody buy into Lebron James mother getting a $50,000 loan for the Hummer he drove in high school? Something seemed very strange about that.)

Few creators have done as many things in life as Alejandro Jodorowsky. He range of creative experience includes being a published poet, playwright, tarot reader, film director, and comic book author. Naturally, with his great gamut of experience comes many, many stories. Many of them are fascinating. But one of the most interesting stories is how his failed attempt at making a Frank Herbert’s DUNE film in the mid-1970s indirectly led to the creative team of the classic sci-fi/horror ALIEN film. Arguably, Ridley Scott ought to thank Jodorowsky for his influence.

From the start, Jodorowsky’s adaptation of DUNE was doomed to fail. The scope and passion for the project were evident, but it was impossible for it all to coalesce into something complete. The films Jodorowsky completed prior to his work on DUNE are brilliant surreal experiments in film-making, but were very challenging to narratively follow. Rumors claim that the release of his first film, FANDO Y LIS, in Alcapulco led to a full scale riots. EL TOPO, his spiritual Western was beloved by Beatles’ John Lennon and Yoko Ono... so much so, that they assisted in the financing of his third film THE HOLY MOUNTAIN.

In 1974, Jodorowsky was approached by a team of French investors that had acquired the film rights to DUNE to direct the film. Immediately, his scope for the film became epic as he planned to film the project as a 10-hour feature film with a cast of actors that included Salvador Dali, Orson Welles, David Carradine, and Mick Jagger. For the art production of the DUNE film, Jodorowsky hired artists Moebius, H.R. Giger, and Chris Foss. He had also hired Dan O’Bannon as head of the special effects department.

With $2 million already spent of a $10 million budget, the project eventually came to a standstill. Years later the film adaptation would resurface with David Lynch helmed as director in 1984.

Despite the production failure of Jodorowsky’s DUNE, many wonderful things came from the experience. The relationship he began with comic artist Moebius led to a series of comic book collaborations including their memorable run on the INCAL. Many argue that you can see the inspirations from Herbert’s DUNE in the INCAL and it’s many spin-off series (including TECHNOPRIESTS and METABARONS).

But the most successful ramification from Jodrowsky’s DUNE may very well be something that is rarely associated with Alejandro Jodorowsky: Ridley Scott’s ALIEN. Jodorowsky gathered an “All-Star” group of fantasy artists of disparate styles for Dune with the intent of having each artist create the distinct civilizations and cultures of the DUNE universe. It was a brilliant idea; so much so that when Dan O’Bannon wrote the ALIEN screenplay, he suggested to Ridley Scott that the same group of artists be used to develop the look of the ALIEN film. Ridley Scott agreed. As ALIEN was smaller in scope than DUNE, the design elements created by the 3 artists are more focussed. But none can argue the overwhelming influence they had on the general vision of science fiction worlds. H.R. Giger designed the Alien and the Alien infested world visited at the beginning of the film. Chris Foss worked for several months on conceptual art for ALIEN (which was never used in the final film). Moebius designed the spacesuits used in the ALIEN film.

Below I have included HR Giger, Moebius, and Chris Foss’ ALIEN Art above their respective work on DUNE.

If you haven't heard, now you will: Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World movie trailer is out. I love it and can't wait to see the film. Bryan Lee O' Malley, Scott Pilgrim's creator is one of the good guys. He's done some great comics for many, many years. I loved his Lost At Sea comic and have also enjoyed the heck out of his Scott Pilgrim books. Many, many years ago I even paid him something super cheap (I think it was $25) to do a beautiful watercolor painting of the main character from Lost At Sea for my girlfriend at the time (she later became my wife). I have no clue why O'Malley decided to be so generous to his fans at the time... but I continue to cherish the gorgeous painting he did for us.

It's wacky and exciting to see that Scott Pilgrim is now months away from becoming a live action film. The director (Edgar Wright) has proven his uber-sense of awesome (with his Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz films). About the only thing I'm not too jazzed about is the casting of Michael Cena as Scott Pilgrim (way too dorky for Mr. Pilgrim, if you ask me), but I'm sure it'll make for a great time.  

What brings the buzz-factor on this project from awesome to unchartably-super-curse-words levels of excitement is the reveal that sprite-art-master Paul Robertson is handling character art duties for the beat-em-up video game based on the movie/comic. Gobi introduced me to the genius of Paul Robertson's art (you can even read Gobi gushing directly to Paul Roberston HERE). He's the PERFECT guy to handle the zany insanity that is Scott Pilgrim.