Comic-Con has concluded, but don’t think the geekiness has to end, my friends. No, no. In fact, we’ve got all your nerdy needs right here, from comic books to sci-fi, cartoons to kings and queens. Plus we give you more Emmy’s catch up (as well as catch up with Shawn Hunter himself in our latest short film review). So before you get hooked on a feeling, scroll down get your weekly buzz.
Movies: After revitalizing household names like Captain America and The Hulk and creating the highest grossing superhero team of all time (and leaving Warner Bros. with their legs spinning in the air like Wile E. Coyote trying to make a Justice League movie happen), Marvel set out to do it all again, though at the time, it seemed less like an attempt at another franchise and more like a Producers style scam to make money from a flop. The equation? Take the most obscure characters in the Marvel Universe (when you’re less known than Howard the Duck, you’re really at the bottom of the barrel) who include a walking tree and a talking raccoon, hire a director best known for his work with (in)famous B-movie studio Troma, and wrangle an eclectic cast that elicits either “Who?” (Chris Pratt, Dave Batista and Lee Pace ain’t exactly A-listers) or “Huh?” (the film contains at least 4 Oscar nominees, one of whom actually won). Release it up against established franchises like X-Men, Transformers and Planet of the Apes, and then, presumably, make a run for Tijuana before the feds start digging into the tax records. Yet, here we are, and here they are, here to save the galaxy, and poised to break even, and possibly break records. Guardians is already looking to be the top pre-ordered film for Fandango in the month of August, and the reviews have been overwhelmingly positive for James Gunn’s silly, zany space adventure. A mid-credits scene that (spoilers) pays tribute to Marvel’s original movie star is enough to sell most folks, as well as checking in to see whats teased for the future. But the bombastic and brilliantly weird worlds James Gunn has brought to life (and will bring to life again in 2017 for the already announced Guardians of the Galaxy 2) deserve to be seen. Come for the action, and stay for the snappy dialogue (“I am Groot” excluded).
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What something a little more serious? Well, would you settle for something that takes itself seriously? Because then you’re all set with Leon: The Professional director Luc Besson’s silly sci-fi action accidentLucy. The film possesses some great action set-pieces, but a flimsy and scientifically unsound premise mixed with an at-times painful script make the film seem like a desperate plea to prove “I can make something vaguely better than that last thing I did with DeNiro and the chick from Glee”. Our femme of the month, Scarlett Johansson, gives it her all, and in the past I’ve suggested she could “act the crap out of anything”. Unfortunately, there’s just too much of it here for even her stellar skills to bail out.
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Emmy Catch-Up
Every week, we here at Man of the Hour will catch you up on one show in each of the major Emmy categories: Drama, Comedy, Miniseries, Movie, Variety and Animation (find our first part here). We’ll tell you what it’s about, what it’s up for, where to catch up and even pick a highlight from the season (which is of course fairly spoilerific, so perhaps avoid clicking play if you haven’t seen the show).
Drama: House of Cards
What is it: Now in its second season, Netflix’s inaugural Original is adapted from a British miniseries of the same name, transplanting Francis Urquhart into Washington D.C., dubbed Francis Underwood and portrayed with devilish charm by the exceptional Kevin Spacey. Charting the rise of the vindictive public servant and his wife from Senator to Vice President in Season One, the show returned with new adversaries, new challenges, and one nagging reporter (whose dealing with sparked a hydra effect) all in the way of Frank’s ascension to his one true goal. Sharply written, ceaselessly compelling and masterfully acted, House of Cards thankfully resides at the home of binge-watching, as its gripping narrative demands more than just an hour at a time.
What else is it up for: House of Cards is up for a total of 13 awards, including Best Actress for Robin Wright, Best Writing, Best Drama Series and Best Actor for Kevin Spacey.
Where to catch up: Both seasons are available only on Netflix
Best scene: Serious spoilers here, folks. After manipulating his way back into the heart of the President in a hail Mary false promise of self-sacrifice, Frank Underwood finally achieves his goal. His ascension complete, he strides into office, stands at his new desk, and closes out the season with a trademark wrap of his fist.
Comedy: Veep
What is it: The third season of Armando Ianucci’s (The Thick of It) D.C. satire continues to follow beleaguered and tragically funny Vice President Selina Meyers, this time offending the Finnish, combating, cuckolding and reconsumating her marriage, and of course gearing up for a presidential run when the unseen POTUS decides not to run again.
What else is it up for: Veep is up for nine awards this year, including a third consecutive nomination for the previous two years’ winner Julia Louis-Dreyfuss, as well as nods for Writing, Casting and of course Comedy Series.
Where to catch up: Every season of Veep is available on HBO Go
Best scene: As fun as Veep’s more absurd moments are (every string of obscenities from Selina Meyers mouth is a gem), the true highlight of the season is the spy-glass into politics with a truly believable recreation of a presidential debate prep-room.
Mini-Series: The White Queen
What is it: Originally on the BBC, Starz broadcast this ten-part miniseries of swords and corcery based on Phillippa Gregory’s Cousin’s War series. Set in the Wars of the Roses, the show follows three women in their search for power and purpose in the midst of the conflict between York and Lancaster, achieving what the must through sex, deceit and spell-casting.
What else is it up for: The White Queen is up for four awards, including Best Music Compositon, Best Hairstyling and Best Costume as well as Best Miniseries
Where to catch up: The full series is available on Starz Now
Best scene: Some may call it a Game of Thrones wanna-be (as has been said of the entire series), but the gorgeous opening credits made casual channel flippers take notice of the epic miniseries.
Movie: Killing Kennedy
What is it: Based on the book by political commentator Bill O’Reilly, Killing Kennedy is a dramatization of the events surrounding and leading up to the assassination of John F. Kennedy by Lee Harvey Oswald.
What else is it up for: Killing Kennedy is up for three Emmys, including Best Cinematography, Best Sound Mixing and Best Movie
Where to catch up: Killing Kennedy is currently unavailable for streaming, so check your local listings for The History Channel
Best scene: Given the context, it seems crass to describe the scene depicting the actual assassination to be “brilliantly executed”, but there’s no other way to describe the fantastic blend of Zapruder tape and fictional footage to craft a profound and gut wrenching recreation.
Variety: Real Time With Bill Maher
What is it: Now in its 12th season, HBO’s political talk show plays like a Daily Show with its gloves off, unrepentantly liberal, whose host is unafraid to come off smug (which he often does) challenge his opponents (which he often does) and even hurt his own cause through pure obnoxious antics (yeah, that happens sometimes too). At times riotous and pious, but almost always irreverent, Real Time with Bill Maherprovides a round table with reps from every angle who hash out the issues with interjections of humor (and occasionally hate) from the host.
What else is it up for: Real Time With Bill Maher only received this single nomination this year.
Where to catch up: The current season is available on HBO Go
Best scene: Bill is at his best when he has something to truly sink his teeth into. The truth is nobody spits venom better than Bill, and the idiotic Open Carry movement earned all of his ire in this season’s sharpest segment of Maher’s famous “New Rules”.
Animated: Futurama
What is it: Recovering from cancellation like a frozen pizza delivery boy, the cult cartoon classic fromSimpsons creator Matt Groening saw its second final season this year at its new home of Comedy Central. Yet, instead of being from its time-slot untimely ripped, Futurama planned for this ending, crafting its most tearjerking episode since ol’ Seymore laid down in front of the pizza joint. Following the store of a 20th century man, Phillip J. Frye, who wakes p in the distant future to join his descendant’s delivery service, Futurama was equal parts satire and absurdism, and was more than funny enough to go toe to toe with its creator’s other brainchild.
What else is it up for: Futurama is up for two Emmys, one for Animated Program, and one for veteran voice actor Maurice LaMarche’s role as Calculon.
Where to catch up: Every season of Futurama is available on Netflix
Best scene: The touching final moments between Frye and Leela as the Professor declares he will reset time to, essentially, the beginning of the series, erasing all their memories of the time that followed tied the show together as neatly as possible. No big to do, no musical numbers, no fan tributes. Just an old man turning to his wife, asking if she wants to go around again, before a flash of light, one blip of credits, and then the very first Futurama title card as it all begins again.
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News: San Diego Comic Con took place this past weekend, and while there weren’t enough big reveals for everyone’s liking, We’ll run down the biggest bombshells right here:
1) Marvel reveals another upcoming film, but not the one everyone was expecting
Marvel Studios began their panel by announcing new roles in Ant-Man, the troubled production originally held by the internet-worshipped Edgar Wright. In addition to Michael Douglas as Hank Pym (the original Ant-man) and Paul Rudd as Scott Lang (the current incarnation), Evangeline Lilly was confirmed as Hope Pym, daughter to Douglas’ character, and House of Cards’ Corey Stoll was announced as Darren Cross, the alter-ego of the villain Yellowjacket. Afterwards, Marvel assembled their Avengers, and threw in Josh Brolin (a.k.a the voice of Thanos) wielding an Infinity Gauntlet for good measure. After some clips of Avengers: Age of Ultron, Marvel finally made a big announcement, but it wasn’t the Black Panther movie or Doctor Strange casting anyone had hoped for. Instead, shockingly, Marvel announced they’d greenlit a sequel to the at the time unreleased Guardians of the Galaxy, proving their faith in the potential franchise.
2) DC whips out Wonder Woman, and Zach proves he’s back
Say what you will about Man of Steel, the one problem we can all agree on is it wasn’t….Snyder-y enough. Fans of the 300 director are used to his over-the-top, stylized filmmaking, and Man of Steel felt too grounded, but a bit of teaser footage put on display for SDCC attendees (released along with a photo of the new Wonder Woman) show he’s back to his old ways, and we can all be thankful.
3) Arrow teases it’s biggest villain yet…then flat out admits it
In the days leading up to the DC TV panel (which, even with Gotham and Constantine on the horizon, was really about the hit adaptation Arrow and it’s Flash spin-off), producers and cast alike teased that the third season of the saga of Oliver Queen would contain a “like-minded” villain, one for whom identity was an important theme, and one who wants to win Oliver to his side. Considering the name-dropping that occurred last season, not to mention plot points involving the League of Assassins and Nyssa Al Ghul, fans were chomping at the bit, hoping those teases meant the beloved villain R’as Al Ghul. When the panel finally happened, well, this clip sorta answered the question everyone was asking.
4) There’s going to be a Mad Max 4, and it looks like sheer perfection
Most Comic Con attendees had no idea that the director of Babe and The Road Warrior (yeah, he did both) had gone back to the Australian well and revived his beloved franchise, this time withTom Hardy and Charlize Theron. Yet, even those who did could not have expected the SDCC trailer to be the mind-blower it was. The rush of real stunts and thrilling chases had the hall pulsing with an energy no other panel good muster, andMad Max: Fury Road quickly went from an obscure reboot to the film to beat.
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Short Film: Sometimes, with short films, you get a cute little story, other times a dramatic tragedy. The best kind are the ones you think will go one way, and then turn it all around. Beginning with an EMT tuning in to a lottery broadcast, Your Lucky Day sets the tone for a cute little comedy, never letting you suspect until it happens that the crux of the film is crime, murder, and cover-up. Even less expected is the presence of Ryder Strong beneath the magazine-cover mask. The film can’t be summarized without a beat by beat recitation of events, so much twisting and turning occurring within a mere 15 minutes as it almost calls to mind Reservoir Dogs. Your Lucky Day is a striking tale of compromise and desperation, accented exceptionally by creative, symbolic visual transitions that convey moods and ideas other shorts would bury in dialogue. Admittedly bleak and bitterly ironic, the film still posses a kind of charm in its creativity and conviction, and showcases a director with the potential for great achievements.In the event that readers haven’t seen this week’s short, we’re keeping the review itself spoiler-free, as this is the type of film built on suspense and surprise, so jump on over to the video, watch it, and discuss it spoiler-ifically in the comments below.
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Lastly, though its not really news, after a bleak short it felt right to pop in a bit of a pick-me-up at the end, and it doesn’t get better than this. Newspeople aren’t really folks you get to know. They’re on your TV every night, but unlike most celebrities, their personal lives tend to stay out of the public eye. But what happens when a newscaster’s child enters the entertainment industry herself? And how does an anchor tackle the story that their child just got cast in a major role on their network? Well, if you’re veteran newsman Brian Williams, you do it the most heart-warming way possible. Watch below, and we’ll see you next week for more Buzz.
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