Here’s the press release:

Warner Bros. Consumer Products and The LEGO Group announced today a partnership that awards the world’s leading construction toy brand exclusive rights to develop build-and-play construction sets based on THE LORD OF THE RINGS™ trilogy and the two films based on THE HOBBIT™.  The multi-year licensing agreement grants access to the library of characters, settings, and stories for THE LORD OF THE RINGS property, as well as films The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again.  LEGO® THE LORD OF THE RINGS construction sets are slated for a rolling global launch beginning in June 2012 in the United States, with LEGO THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY scheduled for later in the year.

“Only LEGO, with their expertise in the construction category, is capable of doing justice to the incredibly imaginative environments depicted in the world of THE LORD OF THE RINGS and the two films based on THE HOBBIT,” said Karen McTier, executive vice president, domestic licensing and worldwide marketing, Warner Bros. Consumer Products. “These films give life to amazing worlds and characters and we are thrilled to bring fans these products that deliver an imaginative play experience befitting of these beloved properties.”

The LEGO THE LORD OF THE RINGS collection will translate into LEGO form the epic locations, scenes and characters of Middle-earth as depicted in all three films, including The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

In late 2012, LEGO THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY will give fans of all ages a chance to build and play out the fantastical story and new characters of the legendary Middle-earth adventures depicted in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journeyfrom Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson, slated to premiere December 14, 2012.

“Our collaboration with Warner Bros. Consumer Products has delivered numerous worldwide successes in the construction toy aisle with lines like LEGO HARRY POTTER and LEGO BATMAN, introducing us to loyal audiences who love great stories, strong characters and the toys that they inspire,” said Jill Wilfert, vice president, licensing and entertainment for The LEGO Group. “It’s particularly exciting to now be able to create sets based on the fantasy worlds and characters from THE LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy and the two films based on THE HOBBIT, not only because we know they will foster collectability and creative play, but also because these are two properties that our fans have been asking us to create for years.”

Information about the sets and collectible minifigures from both collections will be unveiled at a later date at TheLordoftheRings.LEGO.com.

About The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again
From Academy Award^®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson comes The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first of two films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit.  The second film will be The Hobbit: There and Back Again.  Both films are set in Middle-earth 60 years before The Lord of the Rings, which Jackson and his filmmaking team brought to the big screen in the blockbuster trilogy that culminated with the Oscar^®-winning The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will be released beginning December 14, 2012.  The second film, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, is slated for release the following year, beginning December 13, 2013.

Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey, the character he played in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, and Martin Freeman in the central role of Bilbo Baggins.  Also reprising their roles from “The Lord of the Rings” movies are: Cate Blanchett as Galadriel; Ian Holm as the elder Bilbo; Christopher Lee as Saruman; Hugo Weaving as Elrond; Elijah Wood as Frodo; Orlando Bloom as Legolas; and Andy Serkis as Gollum.  The ensemble cast also includes (in alphabetical order) Richard Armitage, John Bell, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Barry Humphries,Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Evangeline Lilly, Sylvester McCoy, Bret McKenzie, Graham McTavish, Mike Mizrahi, James Nesbitt, Dean O’Gorman, Lee Pace, Mikael Persbrandt, Conan Stevens, Ken Stott, Jeffrey Thomas, and Aidan Turner.

The screenplays for both The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again are by Fran Walsh,Philippa Boyens, Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson.  Jackson is also producing the films, together with Fran Walsh andCarolynne Cunningham.  The executive producers are Alan Horn, Ken Kamins, Toby Emmerich and Zane Weiner, with Boyens serving as co-producer.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: There and Back Again are being co-produced by New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. with New Line managing production.

Warner Bros Pictures will be handling theatrical distribution for most of the world and MGM will handle all international television licensing and theatrical distribution for certain international territories for the films.

Related Posts

• April 15, 2011 -- The Hobbit – Start of Production Video Blog
• February 23, 2010 -- Is Lego Lord of the Rings possible?
• April 27, 2011 -- On the Etiquette of Movie Spoilers
• April 17, 2009 -- The Hobbit to be Two Films

Having seen the film three times, each time getting something new out of the movie, I found the music and characters began to resonate with me more and more.  Perhaps it’s because my childhood was somewhat similar, but for whatever reason, the themes that the film contained touched me.

The music, masterfully composed by Giacchino, is both reminiscent of the music of John Williams and entirely original.  The first time you hear the music in the film is with the studio logos, before the movie even begins, and I can remember feeling that music already transporting me back to my childhood.

It is then that the film begins, with a loss that hangs over the whole film: an accident at a plant that takes the life of Joe Lamb’s mother.  It is this beat that sets up the emotional journey of Joe, as he sets off through the summer, trying to be a kid while also trying to deal with the loss of his mother and a father that doesn’t know how to be there for him.  Joe holds tightly to a locket that had belonged to his mother and finds it difficult to move on.  He finds himself on a journey of discovery as an alien is loose in his small town.  The culmination of his journey is in the moment that he confronts the alien face to face.

“Bad things happen,” he says, “but you can still live.”

He is speaking to himself just as much as to the alien.  He’s lost his mother, and has had this amazing adventure while helping his friend to work on a movie.  It is this moment that he knows that life can still move on after you’ve lost someone.  When you lose someone, sometimes it seems like it isn’t fair to still be alive without them, to live your life.  This leads to the final letting go, as Joe knows his mother will always be with him, but he is able to let go of her locket, letting her move on.  He then takes the hand of Alice Dainard, a simple gesture that tells us a couple of things.  He’s ready to really live and his life has a direction after the credits roll.

The film also brings about the innocence of childhood in the way that the children interact with their parents and with one another.  The kids in the film are all very real personalities and were perfectly cast.  While each one may display one stereotype or another, that really reflects real life for a lot of us.  The kids each display distinct personalities and traits and these are definitely kids that would have hung out with each other.  They definitely swore more than my friends and I did (rarely, if ever), but they were also dealing with their lives being turned upside down.

While all of this was happening, one of the characters was working very hard on a short film, speaking highly of production values.  These are kids that are making a movie for the shear love of creating something for yourself and others to enjoy.  Writer / director J.J. Abrams, producer Steven Spielberg and composer Michael Giacchino all created films when they were children, and this film was a way for them to celebrate that childhood hobby.

The film also features the journey of Joe’s father Jackson, as he deals with the loss of his wife and the need to be a father on his own while also taking care of the town as the Deputy during this crisis.  In the end, when he says the line “I got you” he isn’t saying it because he feels that he’s rescued his son.  He hasn’t done that, so that would be illogical.  He says it because he finally gets his son.  He doesn’t yet know the extent of the adventure that his son has been on, but that doesn’t matter now.  He knows that his son had been at the school, he knows that Alice Dainard had been taken by the alien, and he saw them both together.  It is obvious to him that his son had something to do with her rescue.  But now he understands his son’s need for him to be there for him.  He understands and has also learned something from his son – that bad things happen, but you can still live.

In Super 8, J.J. Abrams has captured the footprints of real characters dealing with supernatural situations, and has managed to give the audience stories to focus on that keep the film grounded in ways that we may not perceive at first, but bring more depth the more that you look.

Abrams actually mentioned something during a talk he gave at TED back in 2007, that the film E.T. was actually about a family that was going through the loss of their father, in much the same way that Super 8 touches on the similar theme, with the loss of a mother.

I highly recommend Super 8, and I wonder what you will learn from it.  I hope that it effects you in the same way that it effected me.  I also hope that this film isn’t just a final farewell to films like this, but the beginning of another renaissance of films shot in the old Amblin style.  But if it is, there could be no better sendoff than to end where it really seemed to begin – a hopeful look upward, toward the open sky.

It might not be the best written piece I’ve done, but in trying to capture my thoughts for this movie, words escaped me. There are so many themes to talk about, and so many thoughts, that to capture them all, I would need to write a short novel.

Related Posts

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Arrival at the Theater

When you arrive at the theater, make sure you plan your time dependent on what movie you’re going to see and when you’re going to see it.  I don’t understand it myself, but every time I go see a film at midnight for the first screening, someone always walks in at 12:01 am and looks up for any open seats.  Seriously?  Couldn’t you have gotten there earlier?

And if you get there late, and you notice a couple of seats that are in a prime spot, don’t just sit there until you know if those seats are available.

Being in line for a movie on opening weekend can be just as fun as the movie.  Get to know the people around you.  You’re all going to the same film, so clearly you have that in common.  Plus, if you frequent the opening night screenings all summer, you’re likely to run into the same people again and again.  It makes seeing new movies that much more fun the next time.  But don’t cut.  If you have a big group of people meeting for a movie, and there are two of you in line, the rest of your group does not have the right to join you when they arrive.  This especially applies when the number joining is greater than the number that was there.  If you wish to hang out with your friends, join them.  If they have to cut to join you in line, remember that everyone else that is in line behind you was there before they were, and not one of them appreciates that you have ten friends joining you toward the front of the line at any time.  There are consequences for when you arrive to line up.

When they finally open the doors to let you in, walk in and don’t stop at the door to look for seats.  All the seats should be fairly empty if you’re at the front of the line, and there’s another door that people are using to go in.  If you need to stop, let others pass so they can choose the seats that they got to the cinema early for.

The Previews

I love movie previews.  I enjoy being surprised by a trailer for a film that I didn’t know was coming, or that I didn’t know existed.  Getting to the cinema prior to the previews is a must for me.  I know I’ll get a good seat, and I know that if the movie isn’t any good, that I’ll see a trailer for one that might be.

Talking During the Film

Talking during a new release is strictly prohibited.  I don’t care for nonsensical comments during the film, regardless of how long the movie is, your comments can wait until the lights go up at the end of the movie.  You’re not going to get my attention, and you’re distracting me from what the cast and crew of the film felt was important enough to spend time on including in the movie.  It’s new, so you don’t know if your comment is going to overlap some important dialogue, and we both might miss something important that changes the tone of the rest of the film.  It’s happened to me before.  The movie theater is a place to view a film socially, sure, but remember: we all paid the same amount for our tickets, and we all deserve to watch the movie untainted by your comments.

When it comes to a cult classic, a film that is being played again because of audience demand, it is really up to the audience.  Sometimes it’s fun to mock the movie the entire time, other times it’s just fun to enjoy the movie on the big screen.  Over the past year I’ve finally seen two of my all-time favorite movies on the big screen: Ghostbusters and The Karate Kid (1984).  Talking over those movies was a no for me.  Cheering during those movies was really fun.  Making fun of an old favorite can make for an evening of great entertainment, however.  It’s a tough call, though, because I don’t want to mess with someone else’s experience of the movie.  It could be someone’s first time seeing the movie, and I don’t want to spoil that experience for them.  So tread lightly, and be sure to ask if someone just wants to enjoy the movie.

Also, if you plan on talking at all, whisper.  A whisper isn’t just a quieter form of your normal voice, it’s talking without use of your voice box.  You’re using the air to form the words.

Teach your kids, too.

Using your Phone During the Film

No, a thousand times no.  I don’t care if it is a new or old movie.  The light from any phone may not be distracting you when it is right in front of you, but it is to everyone else in the cinema.  It’s selfish and rude to do that, because you’ve now taken everyone out of the movie by your actions.

Texting, tweeting, talking, all of that can wait until you’re outside of the cinema.  You’re not going to change the world with your comments.

Snacks and Popcorn during the movie

I don’t mind a good snack during a movie, but there are some things that really bother me.  If you have a bag of something or a box of something, a good time to make some noise with it is not during a scene where dialog is happening.  It’s not a good time when there’s a quiet moment.  In fact, if you could just be quiet with your food for the whole film, that would be appreciated.  We’re not in your home, we’re in a public and expensive place.  We can’t rewind the movie to see what we missed.

The same goes for your popcorn.  So you put salt on it, or butter, or whatever.  You do not need to shake the popcorn.  Not ever.  I don’t care what you think it is doing for the flavor or the toppings or whatever.  Shaking the bag or box or tub of popcorn isn’t making it any easier to eat.  In fact, it is covering up the sound of the movie.

And please please please chew with your mouth closed.  Hearing every single time you eat a single kernel of popcorn is like water torture.

If you’re Sick or have a Sick Child

A cough or a sniffling nose is death to any movie.  Not a single time from various people, rather a lot of them from a single person.  It’s best that you have a movie night in, for something like this.  That way, you’re not spreading the germs to everyone else, and the sick can get rest and recover sooner.  Having someone coughing in your ear every 20 seconds during a movie really kills the experience.  I once sat through a movie like that, expecting the girl’s mother to wise up and leave.  I left the movie not remembering what I saw.  And that’s bad: it was Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium.  I went back the next day to an earlier screening in the day, and thoroughly enjoyed the movie.

Please Try and Sit Still

To the person sitting behind me: Yes, I can tell when your foot hits my seat-back.  Yes, I can tell when you’re resting your feet on the top of my seat-back.  Keep your feet to yourself.  Along the same lines, all the seats in a single row are connected with each other.  Please do your best to try and sit still.  When you move around a lot, it’s not just you that is moving, it’s effecting the entire row, and that’s distracting.

When the Movie is Over

There are a number of things to mention here.  First, there are people that try to leave early to beat the crowd.  Where do you think you’re going?  Not only are you missing the entire point of the movie, you’re not going to really beat anyone.  The movies tend to be timed to let people out at varying times so there’s always going to be a whole screening emptying.

Second, the credits feature all of the people that put a lot of work into the movie.  Sometimes there are also extra scenes during the credits or after them.  I like to stick around for these.  If we’re the last two people in the cinema, sometimes they come in and start cleaning up while we’re in there, and that’s okay.  They schedule the movies far enough apart that they should be able to clean up the theater and get the entire next screening seated a good 20 minutes before the previews start.  We’re allowed to stay, and it isn’t rude to do so.

Third, if you didn’t like the movie, don’t feel like you’re doing anyone else a favor by announcing it to the world.  Your opinion is yours, it’s not everyones, so keep it to yourself.

Finally, on the same note, do not talk about the movie at the entrance / exit to the screen.  This goes double when there’s a line for the next show time.  You’re spoiling the movie for everyone that has been waiting for the screening.

Closing Thoughts

Remember, while the movie theater is a social place, it’s not your home.  What you paid for your tickets and concessions doesn’t make you any better than anyone else, we all paid the same amount.  Follow the above and we’ll all have a great time at the cinema.

Related Posts

• April 14, 2004 -- The Karate Kid
• April 27, 2011 -- On the Etiquette of Movie Spoilers
• April 10, 2010 -- New Denver the Last Dinosaur TV Series and Movie in the works
• December 1, 2009 -- My Most Anticipated Movies of December 2009: Avatar, Alvin and the Chipmunks 2, The Princess and the Frog, Sherlock Holmes
• November 1, 2009 -- My Most Anticipated Movie of November 2009: A Christmas Carol

It’s also for this reason that I don’t read reviews.  I think most critics are ridiculous, and I have yet to find a single one that I agree with all the time (based on looking at scores after I’ve seen a movie).  As I haven’t found a critic whose reviews match my own point of view 100% of the time, or even 50% of the time, how can I trust any critic to really get how I’ll feel about any movie.  They might hate a movie that I’ll love, or love a movie that I’ll hate.  Critics hold no sway over my perspective, for this reason, and I’ve found that I love some movies that even the critical mass has hated.  If I had listened to them, I wouldn’t have found the movie.

What does that have to do with movie spoilers?  Well, when I later go back and read a review, I note that they make mention of some pretty big plot points, or twists in the story that I would have been angry to know about before I saw the movie for myself.  This is another valid reason to avoid reviews.

When I make a list of movies to see, I generally know what the content of the movie is going to be, because I carefully pick out the movies that are of the subject matter that I am interested in.  I rarely see any R rated movies, and I try not to see very many movies that I’ll forget in a week, let alone a year.  I know what I’ll like, in general, and for this reason I am rarely disappointed with a movie that I see.  This has lead to some of my friends wondering if I’ve seen anything that I have hated or been disappointed with (as I liked the Matrix sequels and the Star Wars prequels).  I have: Land of the Lost, for example, took what should have been a family movie, and made it into something vulgar, and alienated the fans of the show and families at the same time.  What seemed to me to be a known quantity turned out not to be so.

Such things do happen, though they can be rare.

Cape Town also wrote something I agree with almost entirely, which reminded me of a conversation I had about Shutter Island, which I still have not seen:

Generally I do not mind reading spoilers as long as they are on my terms—and it can never be about a movie that I plan to see. If I’m not planning to see a movie I’ll ask you to spoil everything—partly because I’m curious and partly because I love the trepidation on the person’s face. “Are you sure?” the person asks, certain they’re breaking some unwritten celluloid law.

[...]

There’s something about having a movie spoiled for you that can ruin the entire experience. I want to be surprised. I don’t want to know before I sit down in the theater how the story is all going to unfurl.  A movie only has on chance at telling a story, while a television series gets a new opportunity each week. Spoiling the ending of Smallville would not be as devastating as spoiling the end of Thor.

I don’t like television shows spoiled almost as much as movies.  Having Lost spoiled would have been really horrible.

The article at Cape Town came from the fact that the writer watched a scene that I have not: the after credits scene that appears at the end of Thor.  He thought it might be something simple like the one at the end of Iron Man 2, but apparently it wasn’t.  When I saw that the scene was available, I also thought that I’d take a look, but something told me that I shouldn’t.  So I didn’t look at it, and am saving it for the big screen.

As a matter of fact, on my list of movies to see this year, there are a load of trailers that have released in the last few weeks, and I haven’t watched one.  The only trailers that I have seen are ones I’ve seen attached to movies that I was seeing theatrically.  When it comes to The Hobbit, however, I plan on watching every behind the scenes video and every trailer that comes out.  I can count on Peter Jackson to give just enough, and know that it’ll be all of that and more when it hits the big screen.

How do you feel about movie spoilers?  Are you someone that doesn’t care?  Have you ever cared?  Do you feel that your entire movie going experience is enhanced or reduced by how spoiled you are?

Related Posts

• May 9, 2010 -- Iron Man 2 – Another Marvel Comics Movie better than the First
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• December 16, 2011 -- Lego The Lord of the Rings is coming! (Lego The Hobbit, too!)
• April 30, 2011 -- On Movie Theater Etiquette – How to be a Good Cinema Citizen

When I watched the first production video blog that Peter Jackson put together, it gave me the familiar feeling of The Lord of the Rings behind the scenes.  The familiar music added an emotional weight to the video that conjured up memories of the films that have become so familiar to me, while also getting me really excited to hear the new music that Howard Shore is composing for these new adventures.

The video also made me want to build both Bag End and Rivendell at my house.

There hasn’t been a better writer than J.R.R. Tolkien, nor a better book than The Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit is part of that world.  Watch the video below.

I love how it ends with what was likely the first shot they filmed for the film: a hand picking up the One Ring, followed by a shot of Bag End.

Related Posts

• December 16, 2011 -- Lego The Lord of the Rings is coming! (Lego The Hobbit, too!)
• April 17, 2009 -- The Hobbit to be Two Films
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• August 29, 2005 -- Song: This Man by Jeremy Camp || Lord of the Rings
• August 17, 2005 -- Catholics ARE Christians… nuff said

I read something else that made me excited today, though, and that is the announcement of the monthly publication of a Ghostbusters comic book.  This is something that I have been hoping for, and the reason that I bought all of the Ghostbusters comics that have been released within the last few years.  IDW has finally decided to make it a monthly series, though, and it seems that fan favorite artist Dapper Dan is going to have a hand in it, if not be the series’ artist for a few issues.  I really like his style.  It evokes thoughts of what an animated series would look like if it were based on his artistic style.  I have a feeling that it would be just different enough from The Real Ghostbusters to make it a new, and not derivative, series that is distinct and original.

Of course I would love to see most of the writers from The Real Ghostbusters return to the writer’s room on a new series.  However, I also think Paul Dini would be an awesome addition to the writing team, as he has proven time and again with his work on Batman: The Animated Series among others.  Bruce Timm also went on to work on many of the DC Animated Universe projects, but would be great to have back on the team (he created some character designs for The Real Ghostbusters).  In fact, there were many creators from RGB that went on to work on Batman: TAS.

Many of them will likely be busy working on future DC Animated Universe films as well as Green Lantern: The Animated Series, but that also brings up another idea: direct-to-video animated movies.  Why not create a feature length animated Ghostbusters film to either pilot a new animated television series, or to kick off a series of animated features?  Both Marvel and DC are releasing DTV features to varying degrees of success, and I think that this franchise could sustain something like that.

What do you guys think?  Are you excited for the upcoming monthly Ghostbusters comics from IDW?  Would you like to see a new animated series?  Would you like a series of animated features released direct to video?  If they decided to create a new series, what would you want it to be like?

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#1: Transformers: Dark of the Moon – I’ll start with the movie that I am most excited to see. I will make no apologies for being a fan of Transformers. I will probably always be excited for another Transformers movie. This commercial didn’t have any dialogue, but showed a lot of action and an entire city under siege. I saw someone comment that it looked like “more of the same story” from the first two movies. Technically not true. A battle in the city was done in the first film, but that was to get the cube. The second one had a villain trying to destroy the sun. This one seems to feature a Decepticon invasion. Of course all of them have the same purpose, because the Decepticons have only one goal: victory.

#2: Super 8 – J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg have created what I hope is the start of a return to the Amblin style of film-making. I love this kind of movie, and can’t wait to see it.

#3: Cowboys & Aliens – Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford in a film directed by Jon Favreau, director of Iron Man 1 and 2. I was skeptical myself until I watched the full trailer. This commercial just solidifies it in my mind. It looks like it’ll be one of the most fun movies this summer.

#4 and 5: Thor and Captain America – I have to write about these together, because I’m looking forward to both equally as much, so this is pretty much a tie. I loved the epic feel of the Thor commercial, but the Captain America trailer seemed lacking next to it. However, the Captain America trailer did manage to tell the entire origin of Cap within 30 seconds, and that’s definitely something. Plus, it serves as a great introduction to the character.

#6: Terra Nova – This is the next tv series that I am looking forward to. This could be my next Lost or Heroes. It’s definitely got the pull, for me: I love dinosaurs. The commercial aired just after the Super Bowl ended, if I am not mistaken. Either way, I’m really excited for this series to start, and hope it isn’t a let down.

#7 – Volkswagon Commercial: The Force – This isn’t a movie, but it is based on one of my favorite properties: Star Wars.

#8 – Coca-Cola: Siege – This commercial was awesome, and great to watch without knowing what product it was for until about half way though. Unfortunately that isn’t possible with the title right in the video box. It’s an epic commercial that tells a story pretty quickly.

#9 – Doritos: House Sitting – This commercial started with a very simple concept, and just kept escalating the story. It was very unexpected and goes where you don’t expect.

#10 – CareerBuilder: Parking Lot – This one was funny. It’s not terribly memorable, nor does it say anything about the company that it is advertising, but many commercials on the Super Bowl are more about getting good laughs and viral marketing after the game, than they are about explaining the company.

Missing the top-ten list: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Why? Because when the commercial was on, I felt it was the exact same thing as I’d seen before with the full theatrical trailer. If they include Jack Sparrow’s scream in every trailer, it’s going to kill it in the movie, if it hasn’t already.

And there you have it, my favorite ten Super Bowl commercials. I hope that you enjoyed them as much as I did. I’ll be back to writing new original stories soon.

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• May 9, 2010 -- Iron Man 2 – Another Marvel Comics Movie better than the First
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• April 10, 2010 -- Star Wars Prequel Reboot: Blog #2 – Fans of the Saga
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However, I’ve written in the past about Ghostbusters 3: Thoughts and Feelings on Continuing the Series, and I highly recommend you read it as it has garnered a lot of positive response from fans in some Ghostbusters fan forums.  It’s going to be tough to even live up to our expectations, let alone top all of them.  There will be those of us that find the new film can only sit in the shadow of the original.  There will also be many that feel the new one far overshadows the old (and most of those sentiments will come from younger fans that didn’t grow up with the original).

I admire the confidence, though, and can’t wait to see if it does hold up to things that I have heard about it.

CS: The whole Sigourney Weaver thing about her son taking over and Bill Murray coming back as a ghost…
Reitman: Oh, no, yeah… I mean, Sigourney Weaver has a role in this movie. All the original characters have parts. As well as a whole bunch of new characters… it’s got a really good story, this one. Maybe the best of the whole series. I hope we get to do it.

Read more: Exclusive: Ivan Reitman on Ghostbusters 3 – ComingSoon.net

Related Posts

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• May 6, 2009 -- Who should direct Ghostbusters 3?

I learned something very exciting today.  Not only is Prep & Landing going to air again this year (hoping for a Blu-ray release some day), but they’re also working on a sequel!  Now, the sequel isn’t due until Christmas 2011, is a very long wait.

I was a bit disappointed that I would have to wait another year to have another adventure in the world that was so thoroughly established in the original, and then I saw that they are releasing a short this year as well!

I remember the first time that I watched Prep & Landing.  I was blown away.  Not only was it a very short special, but it had a lot of heart and when it ended, I wanted more.  I didn’t expect it to happen, and not this quickly.  Here’s what I know about each new adventure.  The short – Operation: Secret Santa, and the sequel – Prep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice.

The Prep & Landing short: Operation: Secret Santa

In “Operation: Secret Santa,” Santa’s stealthiest elves, Lanny (Derek Richardson) and Wayne (Dave Foley), are asked by Mrs. Claus (Betty White) and Magee (Sarah Chalke) to retrieve something hidden in Santa’s (Morgan Sheppard) office. If he catches them, they risk being placed on the Naughty List.

The sequel: Prep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice

Walt Disney Animation Studios describes “Prep & Landing: Naughty vs. Nice”: With the Big 2-5 fast approaching, Wayne and Lanny must race to recover classified North Pole technology which has fallen into the hands of a computer-hacking Naughty Kid! Desperate to prevent Christmas from descending into chaos, Wayne seeks out the foremost Naughty Kid expert to aid in the mission: a bombastic member of the Coal Bucket Brigade who also happens to be his estranged brother, Noel.

The shows are executive produced by John Lasseter of Walt Disney Animation Studios / Pixar.  Be sure to watch Prep & Landing and Operation: Secret Santa this year.  I think that you’ll enjoy them.

Learn more about Prep & Landing at Disney.com

Here are a bunch of stills from Operation: Secret Santa:

Related Posts

• May 1, 2009 -- My Most Anticipated Movies of May 2009: X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Terminator Salvation, Night at the Museum 2, Up
• May 26, 2009 -- Disney Remaking Flight of the Navigator!
• April 2, 2009 -- My Most Anticipated Movie of April 2009: Disneynature’s Earth
• October 18, 2008 -- Oliver and Company: 20th Anniversary Edition DVD Details
• September 15, 2006 -- Narnia, More to Release on Blu-ray Disc

The most interesting part of the deal is who makes up the partners in Platinum Dunes: Brad Fuller, Andrew Form and Michael Bay.  Yes, the same Michael Bay who is busy working on Transformers 3.  Apparently there is a meeting set in the next few weeks with writers for the project.

I can see how Michael Bay and Transformers was a good fit, but Michael Bay and TMNT?  That’s a mystery that remains to be seen.  He’s not the likely candidate to direct the film, but there isn’t a director list put together yet, at least in the public.

What would TMNT look like with Michael Bay at the helm?  What concerns me is what would become of the character of April O’Neil.

Related Posts

• February 2, 2010 -- Turles Forever: A Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Team-Up Dream Come True
• April 25, 2009 -- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Back in Live Action Movie in 2011?
• January 26, 2009 -- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles announced for Wii
• September 10, 2008 -- Live-Action Ninja Turtles Hybrid Movie Planned
• September 10, 2008 -- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles returns to Live Action?