Celebrate "The Rocketeer's" 20th Anniversary

Tuesday was one year to the day that The Rocketeer was released, a fun little pulp superhero movie that sadly gets overlooked too often. If you haven't seen it, you probably should, if for no other reason than to quell any reservations you might have about the new Captain America film (they have the same director, don't 'cha know?). It included, among other goodies, Nazi fighting (always a plus), Timothy Dalton playing an evil Errol Flynn parody (Flynn was rumored to be a nazi sympathizer, they do a take off on that), and the ever-ageless Jennifer Connelly at the sexiest she gets with her clothes on (yum yum).

Anyway, being a cult item the film is not without it's diehard fans, and talented ones at that, as evidenced by this animated fan film that's been circling the net. Check it out after the jump.

The Rocketeer 20th anniversary from John Banana on Vimeo.

The Lunatic Fringe: The Usual Suspects

On the two year anniversary of the show, The Lunatic Fringe gets a brand new start with this look at Bryan Singer's The Usual Suspects.



PLEASE NOTE: A lot of my fellow reviewers went out of their way to provide cameo footage for this anniversary episode. All their efforts are greatly appreciated, and it pains me to inform them that none of it is featured here. This is due to two reasons 1) Time. I simply didn't have time to complete the entire video, skits and all, by the due date I set for myself, and 2) On the advice of a friend I have decided to cut back on cameos, in-jokes, skits, and other material in order to make the show more accessible to new viewers and focus on my strengths as a writer and performer. However, I do plan to complete the full video, cameos included, and release it at a later date. I offer my thanks to all those who contributed and my assurances that their efforts will not go in vain. Stay tuned.

Anarchy at the Movies: Green Lantern

A great light has gone out in the universe...it's the fans' hopes for a good Green Lantern movie.

Hope for Green Lantern?

Yes, the CGI looks like shit. I think at this point it's an accepted fact at this point that this, like The Incredible Hulk, was rushed out and will enter theaters looking unpolished at best. In this era of CGI over-saturation that happens more than it should, but hey, what're ya gonna do?

Nonetheless, this clip gives me hope, mainly because it seems that the film is getting a lot of the important stuff right. For one thing, it's well-shot, bad CGI not withstanding. You can clearly see everything that's happening, which shouldn't be a big deal, but it is. The shots are steady and at a good distance, the editing is natural and un-intrusive. Even in the good action movies these days, I'm sick of wanting to reach out and steady the damn camera myself. Not really surprising in retrospect. Martin Campbell did direct three of my favorite action films of the last few decades (GoldenEye, The Mask of Zorro, and Casino Royale).

But the thing that really excites me is that it actually feels like the way a Green Lantern fight scene should. If you've ever read the Green Lantern comics, you've probably given yourself a headache trying to picture any of it playing out in live action. Every other panel the rings produce a different shape or item. Even the Justice League animated series struggled with this, which is why they gave Jon Stewart a more no-nonsense tough guy attitude, not prone to complicated and elaborate constructs. Mostly he just used the ring to fly, shoot lasers and erect force fields. Later in the series he would flex his creative muscles and give us the occasional giant drill or set of fists, but that was about it.

Compare that to this. In the space of less than a minute, Hal Jordan pulls out no less than four different constructs. Jon Stewart would've just blocked the flaming Parallax lugie with a force field, threw the truck with a simple tractor beam, then shot it with a laser blast. Not Hal. Catapults, springs, gun turrets, that's the way a Green Lantern handles things. This shows a real grasp of and respect for the source material. Fingers crossed folks. This could be a good one.

Anarchy at the Movies: X-Men First Class

It took them five tries, but the finally got it right...for the most part.

Anarchy at the Movies: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

If the friggin' ship couldn't be bothered to show up, you probably shouldn't either.

Anarchy at the Movies: Thor

Whosoever watches this review, if he be interested, shall go see the film Thor! Joshua the Anarchist give's his belated opinion on the Thor movie.